California State Teachers Retirement System lessened its holdings in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 184,256 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 7,854 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.09% of SLM worth $5,082,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in SLM by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 34,709 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $957,000 after purchasing an additional 1,436 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in SLM in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,107,000. Invst LLC raised its position in SLM by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Invst LLC now owns 40,896 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new position in SLM in the fourth quarter valued at about $140,442,000. Finally, Vise Technologies Inc. purchased a new position in SLM in the fourth quarter valued at about $238,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.94% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $40.00 price objective (up from $33.00) on shares of SLM in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on SLM from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $32.30.
Read Our Latest Analysis on SLM
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 3,000 shares of SLM stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.15, for a total value of $93,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 35,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,096,324.25. This trade represents a 7.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.
SLM Stock Up 1.1%
Shares of SLM stock traded up $0.35 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $32.16. 1,142,605 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,268,919. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.04. 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 company has a market cap of $6.75 billion, a PE ratio of 12.14, a PEG 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 $34.55.
SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $374.97 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $359.83 million. SLM had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 20.73%. The company's revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that SLM Co. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
SLM Announces Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. SLM's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.71%.
SLM Company Profile
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Free Report)
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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