31,500 Shares in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) Purchased by Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt

Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new position in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 31,500 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $869,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in SLM by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,077 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 594 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its stake in shares of SLM by 187.6% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 42,899 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $981,000 after buying an additional 27,982 shares in the last quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SLM during the third quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Shikiar Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of SLM by 9.7% during the third quarter. Shikiar Asset Management Inc. now owns 231,850 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $5,302,000 after acquiring an additional 20,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning raised its holdings in SLM by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 18,708 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $428,000 after acquiring an additional 942 shares during the last quarter. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLM

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.25, for a total transaction of $122,625.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 83,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,265,292.50. This trade represents a 5.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

SLM Stock Performance

Shares of SLM stock traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $29.11. 2,080,551 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,575,480. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.18 billion, a PE ratio of 10.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.22. SLM Co. has a 12 month low of $19.27 and a 12 month high of $31.49. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $27.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.44.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that SLM Co. will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. SLM's payout ratio is 19.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on SLM shares. Barclays cut their target price on SLM from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Compass Point lifted their price target on shares of SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of SLM from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $29.82.

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.