Rhumbline Advisers Increases Position in Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI)

Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 343,341 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,760 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers owned approximately 0.32% of Navient worth $4,563,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Navient by 47.0% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,355 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 1,392 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Navient during the 3rd quarter worth about $95,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in Navient by 24.6% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 7,360 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $115,000 after buying an additional 1,455 shares in the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co purchased a new position in Navient in the 3rd quarter valued at about $174,000. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its holdings in Navient by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 13,942 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $217,000 after buying an additional 1,491 shares during the last quarter. 97.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Navient Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NAVI stock opened at $13.99 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 9.48, a quick ratio of 9.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.35. Navient Co. has a twelve month low of $12.73 and a twelve month high of $17.56. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $13.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.79. The stock has a market cap of $1.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.06 and a beta of 1.43.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The credit services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.01). Navient had a net margin of 2.96% and a return on equity of 6.69%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Navient Co. will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be given a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.57%. Navient’s payout ratio is 55.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Navient from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Seaport Res Ptn raised Navient from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Navient from $15.00 to $13.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of Navient from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Navient from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Navient has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.90.

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.