Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI – Get Free Report) and PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA – Get Free Report) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, risk, institutional ownership and earnings.
Risk & Volatility
Navient has a beta of 1.18, indicating that its stock price is 18% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, PRA Group has a beta of 1.11, indicating that its stock price is 11% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Navient and PRA Group, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Navient | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1.56 |
| PRA Group | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2.40 |
Profitability
This table compares Navient and PRA Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Navient | -1.64% | 4.68% | 0.23% |
| PRA Group | -19.91% | 15.56% | 3.18% |
Insider and Institutional Ownership
97.1% of Navient shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.2% of PRA Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 33.8% of Navient shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 2.2% of PRA Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Earnings & Valuation
This table compares Navient and PRA Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Navient | $3.20 billion | 0.28 | -$80.00 million | ($0.50) | -18.84 |
| PRA Group | $1.20 billion | 0.59 | -$305.14 million | ($6.73) | -2.81 |
Navient has higher revenue and earnings than PRA Group. Navient is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than PRA Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
PRA Group beats Navient on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
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. It also owns, originates, and services refinance and in-school private education loans; and offers business processing solutions, such as omnichannel contact center, workflow processing, and revenue cycle optimization services to federal agencies, state governments, tolling and parking authorities, other public sector clients, as well as hospitals, hospital systems, medical centers, large physician groups, other healthcare providers, and public health departments. In addition, the company provides corporate liquidity portfolio services. Navient Corporation was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in Herndon, Virginia.
About PRA Group
PRA Group, Inc., a financial and business services company, engages in the purchase, collection, and management of portfolios of nonperforming loans worldwide. It is involved in the purchase of accounts that are primarily the unpaid obligations of individuals owed to credit originators, which include banks and other types of consumer, retail, and auto finance companies. The company also acquires nonperforming loans, including Visa and MasterCard credit card accounts, private label and other credit card accounts, personal loans, automobile loans, and small business loans from banks, credit unions, consumer finance companies, retailers, utilities, automobile finance companies, and other credit originators. In addition, it provides fee-based services on class action claims recoveries. The company was formerly known as Portfolio Recovery Associates, Inc. and changed its name to PRA Group, Inc. in October 2014. PRA Group, Inc. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia.
Receive News & Ratings for Navient Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Navient and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
