SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) Shares Sold by Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) by 29.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 528,792 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 219,558 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in SLM were worth $14,584,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLM. Boston Partners raised its holdings in SLM by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 12,246,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $338,889,000 after buying an additional 456,415 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of SLM by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,923,576 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $158,342,000 after acquiring an additional 43,927 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of SLM by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,175,645 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $142,744,000 after acquiring an additional 338,128 shares during the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new position in shares of SLM during the 4th quarter worth approximately $140,442,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in SLM by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,762,328 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $108,936,000 after purchasing an additional 331,490 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on SLM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Compass Point increased their price target on shares of SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.45.

Insider Transactions at SLM

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.57, for a total value 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. This trade represents a 48.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

SLM Trading Down 2.8 %

NASDAQ SLM opened at $28.90 on Monday. SLM Co. has a 52 week low of $19.39 and a 52 week high of $32.65. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $29.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.08 billion, a PE ratio of 10.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.23.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 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%. As a group, research analysts expect that SLM Co. will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. SLM’s payout ratio is currently 19.62%.

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.