Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 2,044,243 Shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. decreased its stake in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM - Free Report) by 69.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 879,248 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 2,044,243 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.39% of SLM worth $16,811,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vest Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the 4th quarter worth approximately $249,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of SLM by 20.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 267,384 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,642,000 after acquiring an additional 46,032 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of SLM by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,570,065 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $35,004,000 after acquiring an additional 209,632 shares during the period. Toroso Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of SLM during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,335,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in shares of SLM by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 195,399 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $2,661,000 after acquiring an additional 13,638 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on SLM. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded SLM from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $14.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Friday, December 8th. Citigroup upgraded SLM from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $14.00 to $23.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. TheStreet upgraded SLM from a "c+" rating to a "b" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Stephens boosted their price target on SLM from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $20.00 price target (up from $18.00) on shares of SLM in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $19.77.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Donna F. Vieira sold 12,308 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.27, for a total transaction of $249,483.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 126,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,564,155. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other SLM news, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.72, for a total value of $1,949,296.16. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 52,751 shares in the company, valued at $1,093,000.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Donna F. Vieira sold 12,308 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.27, for a total value of $249,483.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 126,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,564,155. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.91% of the company's stock.

SLM Price Performance

Shares of SLM stock traded up $0.19 during trading on Thursday, reaching $21.79. 2,363,401 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,428,862. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.22. SLM Co. has a 1-year low of $11.61 and a 1-year high of $21.94. The company has a market cap of $4.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.08, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.16. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $20.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $17.13.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.15). SLM had a return on equity of 36.86% and a net margin of 20.65%. The firm had revenue of $725.66 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $379.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.33) EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that SLM Co. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. SLM's payout ratio is 18.33%.

SLM announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, January 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $650.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to purchase up to 14.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.