ARGA Investment Management LP Sells 52,503 Shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

ARGA Investment Management LP trimmed its stake in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) by 74.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,116 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 52,503 shares during the quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP's holdings in SLM were worth $500,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SLM. State Street Corp lifted its stake in SLM by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,923,576 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $158,342,000 after purchasing an additional 43,927 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in SLM in the 3rd quarter valued at about $623,000. Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in SLM in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,250,000. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP lifted its stake in SLM by 62.9% in the 3rd quarter. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP now owns 177,840 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,067,000 after purchasing an additional 68,642 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of SLM in the third quarter valued at about $268,000. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

SLM Price Performance

SLM stock traded down $0.10 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $29.95. 2,083,968 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,541,027. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37. SLM Co. has a twelve month low of $19.04 and a twelve month high of $31.49. The company has a market cap of $6.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $27.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.34.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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%. Equities analysts expect that SLM Co. will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. SLM's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.62%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on SLM shares. Compass Point increased their price objective on shares of SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of SLM from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on SLM from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $29.82.

Insider Transactions at SLM

In other SLM 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 transaction of $1,142,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 43,163 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,233,166.91. The trade was a 48.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.