SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) Shares Sold by Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lowered its stake in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) by 4.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,290 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 4,760 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio owned approximately 0.05% of SLM worth $2,477,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SLM. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SLM in the 2nd quarter valued at about $235,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in SLM by 45.7% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 166,538 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,462,000 after buying an additional 52,247 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in SLM by 119.9% in the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 12,979 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 7,076 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of SLM in the second quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of SLM during the second quarter worth approximately $298,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at SLM

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the director now owns 83,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,265,292.50. This trade represents a 5.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on SLM. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of SLM from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on SLM from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $30.00 price objective (up from $27.00) on shares of SLM in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on SLM in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $27.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $26.80.

SLM Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of SLM stock opened at $27.68 on Wednesday. SLM Co. has a fifty-two week low of $18.04 and a fifty-two week high of $28.22. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.51. The stock has a market cap of $5.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.21.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported ($0.23) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.30). SLM had a net margin of 22.18% and a return on equity of 35.92%. The business had revenue of $652.64 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $363.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.11 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that SLM Co. will post 2.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLM Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This is an increase from SLM’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. SLM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.12%.

About SLM

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.