SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Reaches New 52-Week High at $21.79

SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $21.79 and last traded at $21.68, with a volume of 49681 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.60.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on SLM. Wells Fargo & Company raised SLM from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $14.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Friday, December 8th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on SLM from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. TheStreet raised SLM from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $20.00 target price (up from $18.00) on shares of SLM in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on SLM from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, SLM currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $19.77.

SLM Stock Up 1.0 %

The firm has a market cap of $4.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $20.20 and a 200-day moving average of $17.10.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $725.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $379.20 million. SLM had a return on equity of 36.86% and a net margin of 20.65%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.33) EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that SLM Co. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is 18.33%.

SLM announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 24th that allows the company to repurchase $650.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to reacquire up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLM

In other news, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.72, for a total value of $1,949,296.16. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 52,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,093,000.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Donna F. Vieira sold 12,308 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.27, for a total transaction of $249,483.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 126,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,564,155. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.72, for a total value of $1,949,296.16. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 52,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,093,000.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SLM

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of SLM. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 156,130 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,867,000 after purchasing an additional 3,913 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of SLM in the 1st quarter valued at $262,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 26.9% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 180,359 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,311,000 after purchasing an additional 38,282 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 102,214 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,877,000 after purchasing an additional 5,012 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,541,444 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $101,733,000 after purchasing an additional 45,321 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

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.