Proficio Capital Partners LLC Invests $354,000 in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 12,825 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $354,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SLM. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of SLM by 86.4% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in SLM by 32.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,849 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in SLM in the 4th quarter valued at $86,000. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in SLM during the fourth quarter worth about $114,000. Institutional investors own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays boosted their price target on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Compass Point upped their target price on SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, SLM presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.45.

SLM Stock Performance

Shares of SLM stock opened at $30.04 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.32 billion, a PE ratio of 11.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.23. SLM Co. has a 12 month low of $19.39 and a 12 month high of $32.65.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.06). SLM had a net margin of 20.73% and a return on equity of 31.66%. Analysts forecast that SLM Co. will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at SLM

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.57, for a total value of $1,142,800.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 43,163 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,233,166.91. The trade was a 48.10 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

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.