Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) Shares Climb 6.7% After Dividend Announcement

Key Points

• Navient shares rose 6.7% after the company announced a $0.16-per-share dividend, payable December 18 to shareholders of record December 4. The annualized dividend is $0.64, a reported yield of 10.3%, while the payout ratio stands at 120.75%.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: MarketBeat reports an average rating of “Reduce”, with four Hold and four Sell ratings, and an average price target of $8.
• Navient reported quarterly EPS of $0.03, missing the $0.13 consensus estimate by $0.10; revenue was $308 million, compared with analysts’ expectations of $144.92 million.

Shares of Navient Corporation (NASDAQ:NAVI - Get Free Report) were up 6.7% on Thursday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $6.12 and last traded at $6.3190. Approximately 171,068 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 1,191,848 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.92.The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, December 18th. Investors of record on Friday, December 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 4th. Navient's payout ratio is presently 120.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on NAVI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Navient from $8.50 to $9.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Barclays reduced their target price on Navient from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Zacks Research cut Navient from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Navient from $8.50 to $8.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Navient in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $8.00.

Navient Stock Up 5.1%

The company has a market cap of $583.31 million, a P/E ratio of 11.75 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a 50 day moving average of $9.02 and a 200-day moving average of $8.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.37, a current ratio of 7.50 and a quick ratio of 10.53.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.13 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $308.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $144.92 million. Navient had a return on equity of 3.65% and a net margin of 1.79%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.84) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Navient Corporation will post 0.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NAVI. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Navient by 0.4% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 322,085 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $2,635,000 after purchasing an additional 1,354 shares during the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC lifted its position in Navient by 13.5% during the third quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 13,714 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $124,000 after purchasing an additional 1,632 shares during the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its position in Navient by 4.4% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 38,948 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $319,000 after purchasing an additional 1,654 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Navient by 10.5% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 30,707 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $261,000 after purchasing an additional 2,920 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in Navient by 286.7% in the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 4,223 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 3,131 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.14% of the company's stock.

Navient Company Profile

Navient is a U.S.-focused education finance company whose business has centered on managing student loan portfolios and providing loan servicing. Its services have included payment processing, borrower account support and repayment assistance for federal and private education loans, as well as asset-recovery and business-processing services. The company was formed in 2014 through the separation of SLM Corporation, commonly known as Sallie Mae. Navient later transferred federal student loan servicing operations to other providers, including a transfer to Maximus in 2021 and an agreement to move its remaining federal servicing accounts to MOHELA in 2024.

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