Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) Shares Sold by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lessened its stake in Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 45,498 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 1,036 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Navient were worth $709,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Navient by 47.0% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,355 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 1,392 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Navient by 22.1% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 869 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Navient during the third quarter worth about $87,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Navient during the third quarter worth about $95,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Navient by 24.6% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 7,360 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $115,000 after buying an additional 1,455 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.14% of the company’s stock.

Navient Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of Navient stock opened at $14.82 on Friday. Navient Co. has a 12-month low of $13.71 and a 12-month high of $19.68. The company has a current ratio of 9.49, a quick ratio of 9.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.59. The stock has a market cap of $1.59 billion, a PE ratio of 21.48 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a 50-day moving average of $15.20 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.18.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $1.20. Navient had a net margin of 1.71% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $150.04 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.84 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Navient Co. will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.32%. Navient’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 92.75%.

Insider Transactions at Navient

In other news, EVP Stephen M. Hauber sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total transaction of $150,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 256,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,853,245. This trade represents a 3.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 27.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NAVI. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Navient from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Navient from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Navient from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Navient in a research report on Monday, September 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $17.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Navient from $15.50 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.63.

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.