JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) Stock

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $12.50 to $15.50 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "neutral" rating on the credit services provider's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target would suggest a potential upside of 2.92% from the stock's previous close.

NAVI has been the topic of a number of other reports. TD Cowen cut Navient from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Navient from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Navient from $14.00 to $16.50 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, TD Securities raised their price objective on Navient from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Navient currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $13.71.

Navient Price Performance

NAVI traded down $0.18 during trading on Friday, reaching $15.06. The stock had a trading volume of 463,709 shares, compared to its average volume of 766,785. The stock has a market cap of $1.52 billion, a PE ratio of 30.12 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.56, a quick ratio of 9.88 and a current ratio of 9.88. Navient has a one year low of $10.53 and a one year high of $16.97. The business has a 50-day moving average of $13.80 and a 200-day moving average of $13.34.

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

Institutional Trading of Navient

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 2,176 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Navient in the first quarter worth about $40,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Navient in the first quarter worth about $71,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in Navient by 15.7% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 7,303 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $92,000 after buying an additional 993 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Navient by 2,663.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,096 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 7,803 shares during the period. 97.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.