Barclays Increases SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Price Target to $43.00

Key Points

• Barclays raised the price target for SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) from $38.00 to $43.00, indicating a potential upside of 32.08% from its current price.
• SLM reported a net margin of 21.05% and a return on equity of 31.25%, with a quarterly revenue of $403.60 million, surpassing analyst expectations.
• Various analysts have given SLM an "overweight" or "buy" rating, with a current consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $34.45.
• SLM's stock has shown strong institutional support, with 98.94% of shares owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) had its target price hoisted by stock analysts at Barclays from $38.00 to $43.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the credit services provider's stock. Barclays's target price indicates a potential upside of 32.08% from the company's current price.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $40.00 target price (up from $33.00) on shares of SLM in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of SLM from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of SLM in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of SLM from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $29.00 to $38.00 in a research report on Friday, July 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $34.45.

SLM Stock Performance

Shares of SLM stock traded up $0.55 during trading on Friday, reaching $32.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,182,607 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,610,901. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $32.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $30.33. SLM has a fifty-two week low of $19.39 and a fifty-two week high of $34.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The firm has a market cap of $6.83 billion, a PE ratio of 11.69, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.09.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.17). SLM had a net margin of 21.05% and a return on equity of 31.25%. The firm had revenue of $403.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $370.26 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.11 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that SLM will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at SLM

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.15, for a total transaction of $93,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 35,195 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,096,324.25. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of SLM

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of SLM during the fourth quarter worth approximately $405,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of SLM by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 24,089 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $664,000 after buying an additional 1,231 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its stake in SLM by 85.1% during the fourth quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 21,700 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $598,000 after purchasing an additional 9,974 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in SLM during the fourth quarter worth $1,611,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in SLM by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 12,954 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 2,019 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of the company's stock.

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.

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