New York State Common Retirement Fund reduced its stake in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 225,764 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 13,600 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned 0.11% of SLM worth $6,227,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of SLM by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,762,328 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $108,936,000 after buying an additional 331,490 shares during the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd bought a new position in SLM in the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,488,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of SLM by 314.7% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 212,531 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $5,813,000 after purchasing an additional 161,283 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new stake in SLM during the 3rd quarter worth about $3,250,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of SLM by 124.8% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 222,264 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $5,083,000 after acquiring an additional 123,398 shares during the period. 98.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research firms have weighed in on SLM. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays boosted their price target on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $30.91.
Read Our Latest Report on SLM
Insider Buying and Selling at SLM
In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the firm'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 transaction, the director now owns 83,130 shares in the company, valued at $2,265,292.50. This trade represents a 5.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
SLM Trading Up 0.2 %
Shares of SLM stock traded up $0.07 on Friday, hitting $30.19. 3,492,678 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,768,735. SLM Co. has a 52 week low of $19.39 and a 52 week high of $32.65. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $28.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.30. The company has a market cap of $6.35 billion, a PE ratio of 11.39, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37.
SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.06). SLM had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 20.73%. Equities research analysts predict that SLM Co. will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.
SLM Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. SLM's payout ratio is currently 19.62%.
SLM Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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