Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP Reduces Stock Position in SLM Corporation $SLM

Key Points

• Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP has reduced its stake in SLM Corporation by 27.0%, selling 68,082 shares in the first quarter, leaving it with 183,867 shares.
• SLM Corporation reported $0.32 EPS for the last quarter, missing estimates, with revenue at $403.60 million, down 21.4% year-over-year.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.13 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.7% and a dividend payout ratio of 26.13%.

Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP trimmed its stake in SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) by 27.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 183,867 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 68,082 shares during the period. SLM comprises approximately 1.3% of Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP owned approximately 0.09% of SLM worth $5,400,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SLM. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in SLM during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new stake in shares of SLM in the 1st quarter valued at about $45,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of SLM by 37.7% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,714 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 469 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of SLM by 355.4% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,899 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 1,482 shares during the period. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of SLM in the 1st quarter valued at about $62,000. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SLM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $40.00 price target (up previously from $33.00) on shares of SLM in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted 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, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of SLM in a research report on Monday. They set an "overweight" rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of SLM from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $29.00 to $38.00 in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of SLM in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $35.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLM

In other news, EVP Kerri A. Palmer sold 55,000 shares of SLM stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.21, for a total transaction of $1,771,550.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 119,253 shares in the company, valued at $3,841,139.13. This trade represents a 31.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

SLM Trading Down 0.0%

SLM stock traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $31.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 493,458 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,532,546. The stock has a market cap of $6.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.13. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $32.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.02, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35. SLM Corporation has a 12 month low of $19.64 and a 12 month high of $34.97.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.17). SLM had a net margin of 15.46% and a return on equity of 21.93%. The firm had revenue of $403.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $370.26 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.11 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. SLM has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.000-3.100 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that SLM Corporation will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. SLM's dividend payout ratio is 26.13%.

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.