Morgan Stanley Increases SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Price Target to $38.00

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) had its target price raised by Morgan Stanley from $32.00 to $38.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

Several other analysts have also commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Compass Point lifted 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 lifted their target price on shares of SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.45.

SLM Stock Up 1.2 %

SLM stock opened at $28.79 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $6.06 billion, a PE ratio of 10.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $29.16 and its 200 day moving average is $25.75. SLM has a one year low of $19.39 and a one year high of $32.65.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 20.73% and a return on equity of 31.66%. On average, research analysts forecast that SLM will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.81%. SLM’s payout ratio is presently 19.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other SLM news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of SLM stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 43,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,233,166.91. The trade was a 48.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SLM. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in SLM by 12.3% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 9,368 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $214,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in SLM during the third quarter worth about $258,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in SLM during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of SLM by 110.3% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,404 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 2,310 shares during the period. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of SLM by 283.9% in the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 59,866 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,369,000 after acquiring an additional 44,272 shares during the period. 98.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.