Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Sells 35,867 Shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lowered its position in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) by 33.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 72,423 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 35,867 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in SLM were worth $1,997,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SLM. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in SLM by 86.4% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 971 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of SLM by 32.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,849 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of SLM during the fourth quarter valued at about $86,000. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of SLM in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $114,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of SLM by 489.7% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,476 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 3,717 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.94% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at SLM

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 3,000 shares of SLM 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 transaction, the director now owns 35,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,096,324.25. The trade was a 7.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

SLM Trading Down 1.1%

NASDAQ SLM traded down $0.37 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $31.81. 2,069,660 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,271,631. The business's 50 day moving average is $29.95 and its 200-day moving average is $28.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.32. SLM Co. has a 12-month low of $19.39 and a 12-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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.21. SLM had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 20.73%. 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% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that SLM Co. will post 3.07 EPS 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 paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. SLM's payout ratio is currently 18.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on SLM shares. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on SLM from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $40.00 price objective (up previously from $33.00) on shares of SLM in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $32.30.

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.