9,499 Shares in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) Acquired by Dakota Wealth Management

Dakota Wealth Management purchased a new stake in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 9,499 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $262,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Waldron Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in SLM in the third quarter worth $31,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of SLM in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in SLM by 358.7% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,399 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 1,094 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in SLM during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its stake in SLM by 110.3% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,404 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 2,310 shares during the period. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Compass Point lifted their price target on shares of SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted 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. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of SLM in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $29.82.

SLM Stock Down 1.3 %

NASDAQ SLM traded down $0.37 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $28.64. 2,778,892 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,879,468. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.29. The business's 50-day moving average is $27.36 and its 200-day moving average is $23.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.21. SLM Co. has a twelve month low of $18.84 and a twelve month high of $31.49.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.06). SLM had a net margin of 22.18% and a return on equity of 35.92%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that SLM Co. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.82%. SLM's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other SLM news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.25, for a total value of $122,625.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 83,130 shares in the company, valued at $2,265,292.50. The trade was a 5.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

SLM 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.