SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) gapped up prior to trading on Friday after Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on the stock from $30.00 to $32.00. The stock had previously closed at $29.30, but opened at $30.64. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the stock. SLM shares last traded at $29.90, with a volume of 898,280 shares changing hands.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on SLM from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays decreased their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of SLM in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on SLM from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, SLM has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $28.64.

Insider Activity

In other SLM news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of SLM stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.25, for a total transaction of $122,625.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 83,130 shares in the company, valued at $2,265,292.50. The trade was a 5.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLM. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in shares of SLM during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of SLM in the third quarter worth about $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of SLM by 358.7% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,399 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,094 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in SLM during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its stake in SLM by 110.3% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,404 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 2,310 shares during the period. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SLM Stock Up 2.7 %

The stock has a market cap of $6.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.44, 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. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.83.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that SLM Co. will post 2.72 EPS for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

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 given 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 1.73%. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.12%.

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.