Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the six ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $13.90.

Several research analysts recently issued reports on NAVI shares. Bank of America lowered their target price on Navient from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. TD Cowen cut their price target on Navient from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of Navient from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Navient from $15.00 to $13.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Navient from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st.

Navient Stock Performance

NAVI opened at $13.89 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.35, a quick ratio of 9.49 and a current ratio of 9.48. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $13.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 11.97 and a beta of 1.43. Navient has a 52-week low of $12.73 and a 52-week high of $17.56.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The credit services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by ($0.01). Navient had a return on equity of 6.69% and a net margin of 2.96%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Navient will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navient

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NAVI. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Navient in the third quarter worth about $1,398,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in Navient in the third quarter worth about $511,000. EMC Capital Management raised its stake in Navient by 2,193.7% in the fourth quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 20,276 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 19,392 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Navient in the third quarter worth about $714,000. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Navient by 59.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 284,130 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,429,000 after purchasing an additional 105,454 shares during the period. 97.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.