Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Buys New Holdings in Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 239,417 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,182,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned 0.22% of Navient as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake 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 worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 2,176 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Navient during the fourth quarter valued at $167,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Navient by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 12,877 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $171,000 after buying an additional 1,804 shares during the last quarter. Twinbeech Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Navient during the fourth quarter valued at $173,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Navient during the fourth quarter valued at $176,000. 97.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on NAVI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Navient from $11.00 to $12.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. TD Cowen cut Navient from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group dropped 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. Finally, TD Securities increased their price objective on Navient from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $12.93.

Navient Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NAVI traded down $0.11 during trading on Friday, hitting $13.45. The company had a trading volume of 382,196 shares, compared to its average volume of 753,379. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $13.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.35, a quick ratio of 9.49 and a current ratio of 9.48. Navient Co. has a 12 month low of $10.53 and a 12 month high of $16.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.59 and a beta of 1.38.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $150.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.47 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Navient Co. will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. Navient's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 128.00%.

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.