Shares of Navient sank more than 9.5 percent Tuesday after a report said that an ongoing government audit points to deceptive practices at the company that may have resulted in tens of thousands of borrowers opting into higher-cost plans.
The results of the audit, reported by The Associated Press, suggest that the nation’s third-largest student loan servicing company appeared to boost its profits by steering some borrowers into the high-cost plans without discussing options that would have been less expensive over time.
Navient is currently battling lawsuits in state and federal court that accuse the company of such misleading practices. The AP said it received a copy of the audit from the office of Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, a loud and frequent critic of Navient and the current Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.