SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM) Stock Has Consensus Target Price of $26.44

SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eleven brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $26.44.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of SLM from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $27.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of SLM from $28.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of SLM from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd.

Institutional Trading of SLM

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in SLM during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Heritage Family Offices LLP acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of SLM by 48.7% during the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,016 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 660 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new position in shares of SLM in the 2nd quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, Nykredit A S purchased a new position in shares of SLM in the 2nd quarter valued at about $77,000. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SLM Price Performance

SLM stock opened at $16.91 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $22.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.13 and a beta of 1.01. SLM has a 1 year low of $16.54 and a 1 year high of $31.06.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The credit services provider reported ($0.19) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by ($0.36). SLM had a return on equity of 26.34% and a net margin of 20.43%. The company had revenue of $375.47 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $453.34 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.63 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 31.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that SLM will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Investors of record on Friday, December 4th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 4th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is 18.84%.

About SLM

SLM Corporation, commonly known as Sallie Mae, is a U.S.-based education finance company. Through Sallie Mae Bank, it primarily provides private student loans to undergraduate and graduate students, as well as loans for career training and other education-related expenses. The company also offers consumer banking products, including savings accounts and certificates of deposit. Its services include supporting borrowers through loan application, repayment and customer service processes. Founded in 1972 as the Student Loan Marketing Association, the organization was later privatized and became known as Sallie Mae.