SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) Shares Sold by Edgestream Partners L.P.

Edgestream Partners L.P. lessened its stake in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) by 32.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 95,363 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 46,759 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P.’s holdings in SLM were worth $2,630,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in SLM by 86.4% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in SLM during the third quarter worth $31,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in SLM during the third quarter worth $35,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in SLM by 32.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,849 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in SLM during the fourth quarter worth $86,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLM

In other SLM news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of the firm’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 sale, the director now directly owns 43,163 shares in the company, valued at $1,233,166.91. This trade represents a 48.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

SLM Trading Up 1.6 %

NASDAQ:SLM opened at $29.46 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $6.20 billion, a PE ratio of 11.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $29.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.62. SLM Co. has a 12-month low of $19.39 and a 12-month high of $32.65. 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) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.06). SLM had a net margin of 20.73% and a return on equity of 31.66%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that SLM Co. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays raised their price target on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on SLM from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $30.91.

SLM 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.