Insider Selling: SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM) EVP Sells 55,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Kerri A. Palmer, EVP of SLM Corporation, sold 55,000 shares at an average price of $32.21, reducing her holdings by 31.56% and bringing her total ownership to approximately $3.84 million.
• SLM's quarterly earnings report revealed earnings per share of $0.32, missing expectations, with a revenue decrease of 21.4% from the same quarter last year.
• The company announced a $0.13 quarterly dividend, set to be paid on September 15th, with a current dividend yield of 1.6% and a payout ratio of 26.13%.

SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) EVP Kerri A. Palmer sold 55,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.21, for a total value of $1,771,550.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 119,253 shares in the company, valued at $3,841,139.13. The trade was a 31.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

SLM Price Performance

NASDAQ SLM traded up $0.46 on Monday, hitting $31.69. 302,828 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,608,001. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $32.60 and a 200-day moving average of $30.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.02. SLM Corporation has a 52 week low of $19.39 and a 52 week high of $34.97. The stock has a market cap of $6.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.13.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $403.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $370.26 million. SLM had a net margin of 15.46% and a return on equity of 21.93%. The firm's revenue was down 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.11 earnings per share. Analysts expect that SLM Corporation will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. SLM's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on SLM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised SLM from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $29.00 to $38.00 in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price 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 reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $40.00 target price (up previously from $33.00) on shares of SLM in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on SLM from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on SLM from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $35.00.

Institutional Trading of SLM

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of SLM in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in shares of SLM in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new stake in shares of SLM in the 1st quarter valued at about $45,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of SLM by 37.7% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,714 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 469 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of SLM by 355.4% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,899 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 1,482 shares during the period. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About SLM

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.