SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eleven research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $31.18.

SLM has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays increased their target price on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Compass Point increased their price objective on SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th.

SLM Trading Down 1.6 %

SLM stock traded down $0.44 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $26.21. The company had a trading volume of 79,191 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,165,157. The firm has a market cap of $5.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.05. SLM has a 12-month low of $19.39 and a 12-month high of $32.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $29.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.92.

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SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) 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 forecast that SLM will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. SLM's payout ratio is 19.62%.

Insider Transactions at SLM

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were 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 directly owns 43,163 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,233,166.91. This trade represents a 48.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SLM

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Boston Partners grew its position in SLM by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 12,246,797 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $338,889,000 after acquiring an additional 456,415 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in SLM by 39.0% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,529,496 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $207,664,000 after buying an additional 2,111,699 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in SLM by 0.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,923,576 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $158,342,000 after buying an additional 43,927 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new stake in shares of SLM in the fourth quarter valued at $144,101,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of SLM by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,175,645 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $142,744,000 after purchasing an additional 338,128 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.94% of the company's stock.

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.