Brokerages Set Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) Price Target at $15.56

Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) have been given an average rating of “Reduce” by the nine research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and six have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $15.56.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on NAVI shares. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Navient from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Navient from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Navient from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 8th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navient

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NAVI. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Navient during the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Navient in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Navient by 22.1% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 869 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its position in Navient by 23.1% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 6,245 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $109,000 after acquiring an additional 1,173 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in Navient during the 2nd quarter valued at $121,000. Institutional investors own 97.14% of the company’s stock.

Navient Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NAVI opened at $15.87 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $15.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.30, a current ratio of 9.99 and a quick ratio of 9.99. The stock has a market cap of $1.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.17 and a beta of 1.39. Navient has a 1-year low of $13.95 and a 1-year high of $19.68.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $157.27 million. Navient had a net margin of 3.41% and a return on equity of 11.06%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.70 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Navient will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th were given a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 6th. Navient’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.03%.

About Navient

Navient Corporation provides technology-enabled education finance and business processing solutions for education, health care, and government clients in the United States. It operates through three segments: Federal Education Loans, Consumer Lending, and Business Processing. The company owns Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) loans that are insured or guaranteed by state or not-for-profit agencies; and performs servicing on its portfolios, as well as federal education loans held by other institutions.