D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. Acquires 228,385 Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI)

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. grew its stake in Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI - Free Report) by 46.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 725,244 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 228,385 shares during the quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. owned 0.68% of Navient worth $9,638,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in NAVI. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Navient by 815.0% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,443 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Navient in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $167,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP boosted its position in Navient by 16.3% during 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 last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Navient by 757.3% during the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 14,737 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $196,000 after acquiring an additional 13,018 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AXQ Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Navient in the fourth quarter worth $196,000. Institutional investors own 97.14% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Securities increased their price objective on shares of Navient from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com downgraded Navient from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Navient from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. TD Cowen cut Navient from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Navient from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $12.93.

Navient Price Performance

NAVI stock traded down $0.08 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $13.68. 59,447 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 768,345. Navient Co. has a twelve month low of $10.53 and a twelve month high of $16.97. The company has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.80 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.35, a current ratio of 9.48 and a quick ratio of 9.49. The company has a 50-day moving average of $12.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $13.59.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.09. Navient had a return on equity of 6.69% and a net margin of 2.96%. The firm had revenue of $156.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $150.40 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.47 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Navient Co. will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.68%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Navient's payout ratio is presently 128.00%.

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.