D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. Decreases Position in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. cut its stake in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) by 75.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,023 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 74,750 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc.'s holdings in SLM were worth $663,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of SLM by 32.2% in the fourth 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. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in shares of SLM by 86.4% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 971 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. raised its position in SLM by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 24,263 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $669,000 after purchasing an additional 729 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in SLM by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 9,052 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $250,000 after purchasing an additional 960 shares during the period. Finally, LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of SLM by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. now owns 11,023 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 1,023 shares during the period. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on SLM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on SLM from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays increased their price objective on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $40.00 price target (up previously from $33.00) on shares of SLM in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $31.82.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 3,000 shares of SLM stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

SLM Price Performance

Shares of SLM stock traded down $0.62 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $32.89. 1,976,336 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,264,034. The business has a 50-day moving average of $29.68 and a 200 day moving average of $28.70. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $6.90 billion, a PE ratio of 12.41, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.05. SLM Co. has a fifty-two week low of $19.39 and a fifty-two week high of $34.55.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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. 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 analysts' expectations of $359.83 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that SLM Co. will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

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 given 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 1.58%. SLM's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.71%.

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.