Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) Trading Down 5.9% – Here’s Why

Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI)’s stock price was down 5.9% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $10.70 and last traded at $10.75. Approximately 106,965 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 792,172 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.42.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NAVI. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Navient from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen raised shares of Navient from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Navient from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Navient from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Navient from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Navient presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.00.

Navient Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $13.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $14.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of 9.49 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.35, a current ratio of 9.48 and a quick ratio of 9.49.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The credit services provider reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.01). Navient had a return on equity of 6.69% and a net margin of 2.96%. Sell-side analysts predict that Navient Co. will post 1.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Navient’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.17%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navient

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Navient by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 44,052 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $585,000 after buying an additional 823 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Navient by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 14,173 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 1,587 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Navient by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 12,877 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,804 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Navient by 815.0% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,443 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 2,176 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its holdings in Navient by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 47,774 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $635,000 after purchasing an additional 2,190 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.14% of the company’s stock.

Navient Company Profile

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.