Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) Shares Sold by North Star Asset Management Inc.

North Star Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) by 19.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 462,259 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 113,112 shares during the quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. owned 0.39% of Navient worth $8,607,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Navient by 277.8% in the third quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC now owns 1,511 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,111 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Navient by 314.6% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,193 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,664 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Navient by 299.1% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,530 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 1,896 shares during the period. State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of Navient during the fourth quarter worth $62,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Navient by 87.4% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 5,042 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 2,352 shares in the last quarter. 97.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Navient

In related news, EVP Mark L. Heleen sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.20, for a total value of $172,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 385,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,631,924.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 26.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on NAVI shares. Citigroup upped their price target on Navient from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Navient from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $18.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Navient from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $17.00 to $15.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Navient from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $14.00 target price (down previously from $17.00) on shares of Navient in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Navient currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $16.67.

Navient Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NAVI traded down $0.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $16.21. 1,204,063 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 604,729. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.11 and a beta of 1.38. Navient Co. has a 1 year low of $14.10 and a 1 year high of $19.69. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.13. The company has a quick ratio of 13.63, a current ratio of 13.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 19.35.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by ($0.07). Navient had a return on equity of 14.17% and a net margin of 4.72%. The business had revenue of $193.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $210.76 million. Analysts anticipate that Navient Co. will post 2.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Navient Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.95%. Navient’s payout ratio is 35.96%.

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.