LSV Asset Management Takes Position in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 392,300 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $10,820,000. LSV Asset Management owned 0.18% of SLM at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new position in SLM in the 3rd quarter valued at about $274,000. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of SLM by 136.9% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 38,618 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $884,000 after purchasing an additional 22,315 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of SLM by 107.3% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 34,388 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $786,000 after purchasing an additional 17,799 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted 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 period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in SLM by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 66,806 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,528,000 after buying an additional 7,816 shares in the last quarter. 98.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

SLM Stock Up 1.9 %

SLM stock traded up $0.50 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $26.78. 1,979,295 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,178,612. The business's 50-day moving average price is $28.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.05. SLM Co. has a 52-week low of $19.39 and a 52-week high of $32.65.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 expect that SLM Co. will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $0.13 dividend. 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 1.94%. SLM's dividend payout ratio is presently 19.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. 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 report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Compass Point boosted their price target on SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $31.18.

About SLM

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.