Shikiar Asset Management Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

Shikiar Asset Management Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) by 11.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 204,350 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 27,500 shares during the quarter. SLM makes up 1.5% of Shikiar Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Shikiar Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.10% of SLM worth $5,636,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of SLM by 4.8% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 11,594 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $265,000 after buying an additional 526 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in SLM by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 33,825 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $933,000 after acquiring an additional 552 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in SLM by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,077 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $116,000 after acquiring an additional 594 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 942 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 9,368 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $214,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.94% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of SLM in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on SLM from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of SLM in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $30.00 price objective (up previously from $27.00) on shares of SLM in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of SLM from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, SLM presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $27.90.

SLM Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of SLM stock traded down $0.15 during trading on Friday, hitting $27.98. 1,926,352 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,608,089. SLM Co. has a 52-week low of $18.25 and a 52-week high of $28.91. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $26.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.63. The firm has a market cap of $5.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported ($0.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.30). The company had revenue of $652.64 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $363.40 million. SLM had a net margin of 22.18% and a return on equity of 35.92%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.11 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that SLM Co. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLM Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. This is an increase from SLM's previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.86%. SLM's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.12%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.25, for a total value of $122,625.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 83,130 shares in the company, valued at $2,265,292.50. This represents a 5.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

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.