Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) shares gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. 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 trading hands.

The credit services provider reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.14). Navient had a net margin of 3.41% and a return on equity of 11.06%. The company had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $157.27 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.70 earnings per share.

Navient Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. Navient’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on NAVI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Navient from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Navient from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Navient from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Navient from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $15.80.

Insider Transactions at Navient

In other news, EVP Mark L. Heleen sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.00, for a total transaction of $160,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 393,611 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,297,776. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 27.99% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NAVI. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Navient during the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Navient in the second quarter valued at about $50,000. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in Navient by 23.1% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 6,245 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 1,173 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Navient by 1,762.0% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 9,310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $173,000 after buying an additional 8,810 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boulder Hill Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Navient during the fourth quarter worth about $188,000. Institutional investors own 97.14% of the company’s stock.

Navient Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.30, a current ratio of 9.99 and a quick ratio of 12.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.00 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $14.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.92.

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.