Vestcor Inc Invests $446,000 in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

Vestcor Inc bought a new stake in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 16,181 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $446,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in SLM by 86.4% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of SLM in the third quarter worth $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in SLM by 32.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,849 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the fourth quarter valued at $86,000. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of SLM during the fourth quarter worth about $114,000. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SLM Price Performance

NASDAQ SLM opened at $29.26 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.04, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.23. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $29.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.93. SLM Co. has a 1-year low of $19.39 and a 1-year 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 announced 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 return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 20.73%. Equities analysts forecast that SLM Co. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. SLM’s payout ratio is 19.62%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director now 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on SLM shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays boosted their target price on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Compass Point lifted their price target on SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, SLM currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.45.

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.