Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) Shares Gap Down to $15.54

Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $15.54, but opened at $14.50. Navient shares last traded at $14.92, with a volume of 50,116 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NAVI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Navient from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 8th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Navient from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Navient from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Navient from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.70.

Navient Stock Up 1.0 %

The company has a quick ratio of 12.52, a current ratio of 12.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.38. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.93. The company has a market capitalization of $1.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.04 and a beta of 1.40.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $163.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $188.04 million. Navient had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 3.93%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Navient Co. will post 1.62 EPS for the current year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. Navient’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Mark L. Heleen sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.00, for a total transaction of $160,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 393,611 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,297,776. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 27.99% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Navient

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Navient by 31.5% in the 4th quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 3,586,501 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $66,781,000 after purchasing an additional 858,890 shares in the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Navient by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 811,826 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $15,116,000 after buying an additional 65,576 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd bought a new stake in Navient during the 4th quarter valued at $13,546,000. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Navient by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 391,401 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,810,000 after acquiring an additional 27,997 shares during the period. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. raised its position in shares of Navient by 90.9% in the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 386,379 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $6,723,000 after acquiring an additional 183,969 shares in the last quarter. 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.