Duquesne Family Office LLC Takes Position in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

Duquesne Family Office LLC bought a new stake in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 2,520,275 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $69,509,000. SLM comprises approximately 1.9% of Duquesne Family Office LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Duquesne Family Office LLC owned 1.19% of SLM at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in SLM by 86.4% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 971 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of SLM by 32.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,849 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of SLM during the 4th quarter valued at about $86,000. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new stake in SLM in the fourth quarter valued at about $114,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in SLM by 489.7% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,476 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $123,000 after purchasing an additional 3,717 shares in the last quarter. 98.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SLM. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $33.00 target price (up from $31.00) on shares of SLM in a report on Friday, April 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $30.73.

SLM Trading Up 0.7 %

NASDAQ:SLM traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $32.18. 1,806,473 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,241,191. The company's 50 day moving average is $28.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.64. The company has a market capitalization of $6.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.05. SLM Co. has a twelve month low of $19.39 and a twelve month high of $32.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $374.97 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $359.83 million. SLM had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 20.73%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.27 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that SLM Co. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 5th. SLM's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLM

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.15, for a total value of $93,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 35,195 shares in the company, valued at $1,096,324.25. This represents a 7.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

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.