Brokerages Set SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) PT at $31.45

Shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $31.45.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on SLM from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Compass Point upped their price objective on SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLM

In other SLM news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.57, for a total value of $1,142,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 43,163 shares in the company, valued at $1,233,166.91. This represents a 48.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in SLM by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 34,709 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $957,000 after acquiring an additional 1,436 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of SLM during the fourth quarter worth about $5,107,000. Invst LLC boosted its stake in shares of SLM by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Invst LLC now owns 40,896 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,128,000 after buying an additional 703 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC acquired a new stake in shares of SLM during the fourth quarter worth about $140,442,000. Finally, Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of SLM during the fourth quarter worth about $238,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

SLM Stock Up 3.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ SLM opened at $30.11 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $6.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.36, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37. SLM has a 52-week low of $19.39 and a 52-week high of $32.65. The business’s 50 day moving average is $29.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.01.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.06). SLM had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 20.73%. Research analysts predict that SLM will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.73%. SLM’s payout ratio is currently 19.62%.

SLM Company Profile

SLM Corporation, through its subsidiaries, originates and services private education loans to students and their families to finance the cost of their education in the United States. It is also involved in the provision of retail deposit accounts, including certificates of deposit, money market accounts, and high-yield savings accounts; and interest-bearing omnibus accounts.