Navient Corporation (NASDAQ:NAVI) Receives $12.93 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Navient Corporation (NASDAQ:NAVI - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Reduce" from the eight research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $12.93.

Several research firms have recently commented on NAVI. TD Cowen cut Navient from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Navient from $11.00 to $12.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities raised their price target on Navient from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Navient from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Navient from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 31st.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NAVI. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Navient by 815.0% during 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 period. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Navient in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Navient in the 1st quarter valued at $71,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Navient by 15.7% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 7,303 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 993 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Navient by 2,663.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,096 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 7,803 shares during the period. 97.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Navient Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ NAVI traded up $0.10 on Wednesday, reaching $13.51. 1,442,282 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 747,578. Navient has a fifty-two week low of $10.53 and a fifty-two week high of $16.97. The company has a 50 day moving average of $12.92 and a 200 day moving average of $13.31. The company has a current ratio of 9.88, a quick ratio of 9.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.37 billion, a PE ratio of 27.02 and a beta of 1.40.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $156.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $150.40 million. Navient had a net margin of 1.37% and a return on equity of 5.20%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.47 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Navient will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. Navient's payout ratio is currently 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.