SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) Director Robert S. Strong Sells 40,000 Shares

SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.57, for a total value of $1,142,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 43,163 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,233,166.91. This represents a 48.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

SLM Stock Performance

Shares of SLM stock traded up $0.02 during trading on Thursday, reaching $28.72. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,858,853 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,671,861. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $27.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.06. SLM Co. has a 52 week low of $18.84 and a 52 week high of $31.49. The firm has a market cap of $6.10 billion, a PE ratio of 10.01, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.06). SLM had a net margin of 22.18% and a return on equity of 35.92%. Equities analysts forecast that SLM Co. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

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 issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on SLM. Compass Point upped their target price on shares of SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of SLM from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of SLM in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $29.82.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SLM

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new stake in SLM in the second quarter valued at about $2,443,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of SLM during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,338,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in SLM by 13.3% during 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 SLM by 187.6% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 42,899 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $981,000 after purchasing an additional 27,982 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chickasaw Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in SLM in the third quarter valued at approximately $217,000. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.