Natixis Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI)

Natixis Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) by 10.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,243 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 1,949 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Navient were worth $216,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Navient in the third quarter worth about $714,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Navient by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,092,270 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $17,028,000 after purchasing an additional 19,606 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Navient by 82.7% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 38,323 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $597,000 after purchasing an additional 17,349 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in shares of Navient in the third quarter valued at $511,000. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC raised its position in shares of Navient by 137.2% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 33,653 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $525,000 after buying an additional 19,465 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.14% of the company’s stock.

Navient Stock Down 2.9 %

NASDAQ:NAVI opened at $12.82 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.05 and a beta of 1.36. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $13.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.35, a current ratio of 9.48 and a quick ratio of 9.49. Navient Co. has a 1-year low of $12.68 and a 1-year high of $17.56.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The credit services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 research analysts anticipate that Navient Co. will post 1.04 EPS for the current year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.99%. Navient’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NAVI. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Navient from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America cut their target price 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. StockNews.com lowered Navient from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Navient from $15.00 to $13.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average 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.