Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 45,197 Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP decreased its stake in shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI - Free Report) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,044,528 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 45,197 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 8.42% of Navient worth $120,200,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Navient by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,822,583 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $24,222,000 after purchasing an additional 109,229 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Navient by 47.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,315,841 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $17,488,000 after acquiring an additional 423,013 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Navient by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,149,599 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $15,278,000 after acquiring an additional 10,788 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Navient by 1,043.8% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 635,466 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $8,445,000 after acquiring an additional 579,909 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in Navient by 51.3% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 555,634 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $7,384,000 after purchasing an additional 188,399 shares during the last quarter. 97.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Navient Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of NAVI stock traded up $0.28 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $12.81. 89,454 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 809,519. The company has a current ratio of 9.48, a quick ratio of 9.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.35. Navient Co. has a 1 year low of $10.53 and a 1 year high of $16.97. The firm has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a PE ratio of 11.04 and a beta of 1.24. The company's 50 day moving average is $12.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.77.

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

Navient Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.00%. Navient's dividend payout ratio is currently 55.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on NAVI. TD Securities upped their target price on Navient from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday. TD Cowen cut shares of Navient from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Navient from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Navient from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Navient from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $12.93.

Navient 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.