Heritage Investors Management Corp Lowers Stake in SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM)

Heritage Investors Management Corp reduced its holdings in shares of SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) by 7.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 153,525 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 11,955 shares during the period. Heritage Investors Management Corp owned about 0.07% of SLM worth $4,509,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Trust Investment Advisors bought a new stake in shares of SLM in the 1st quarter valued at about $237,000. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in SLM by 1.8% in the first quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 57,802 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,698,000 after purchasing an additional 1,012 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of SLM by 21.3% during the first quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 82,654 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,428,000 after purchasing an additional 14,531 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its holdings in shares of SLM by 0.6% in the first quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 120,732 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,417,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its stake in shares of SLM by 55.3% in the first quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 81,576 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $2,396,000 after buying an additional 29,055 shares during the period. 98.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SLM Stock Down 0.9%

SLM stock traded down $0.31 during trading on Friday, hitting $32.83. 1,671,974 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,309,375. The stock has a market cap of $6.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34. SLM Corporation has a 1 year low of $19.39 and a 1 year high of $34.97. The firm's 50 day moving average is $32.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.21.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.21. SLM had a return on equity of 31.25% and a net margin of 21.05%. The business had revenue of $374.97 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $359.83 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.27 EPS. The company's revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that SLM Corporation will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th were issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 5th. SLM's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of SLM in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays upped their target price on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $40.00 price target (up previously from $33.00) on shares of SLM in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of SLM from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $29.00 to $38.00 in a report on Friday, July 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, SLM presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $33.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.15, for a total transaction of $93,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 35,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,096,324.25. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

SLM 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.