SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a “Hold” consensus on SLM, with six hold, five buy, and one sell rating among 12 brokerages. The average 12-month price target is $29.80.
• SLM’s latest quarterly results fell short of expectations, with EPS of $0.29 versus the $0.46 consensus and revenue of $401.11 million versus estimates of $409.22 million. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $3.12.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.13, equivalent to $0.52 annually and a 2.0% yield; institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of outstanding shares.

Shares of SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the twelve brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $29.80.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research lowered SLM from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on SLM from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on SLM from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Barclays reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $26.00 target price (down from $30.00) on shares of SLM in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of SLM from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th.

SLM Trading Up 2.0%

SLM opened at $25.69 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $4.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.18, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63. The company's 50 day moving average is $23.79 and its 200-day moving average is $23.24. SLM has a 1-year low of $17.77 and a 1-year high of $33.17.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $401.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $409.22 million. SLM had a return on equity of 33.81% and a net margin of 26.09%.SLM's revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. SLM has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.100-3.200 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that SLM will post 3.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. SLM's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.53%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of SLM by 33.4% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 547,724 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $16,087,000 after buying an additional 137,285 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of SLM by 63.1% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 261,392 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $5,596,000 after acquiring an additional 101,120 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP boosted its holdings in SLM by 616.6% in the third quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 109,485 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,031,000 after acquiring an additional 94,207 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in SLM by 31.3% in the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 53,673 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,452,000 after acquiring an additional 12,793 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in SLM during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $263,000. 98.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SLM Company Profile

SLM Corporation, operating as Sallie Mae Bank, is a leading U.S.-based consumer banking company specializing in education financing and related banking products. The company provides a range of private student loans for undergraduate and graduate studies, Parent PLUS loans, and specialized financing for career and certificate programs. In addition to its core lending services, Sallie Mae offers deposit products including savings accounts, checking accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and credit cards tailored to students and young adults.

Founded in 1972 as the Student Loan Marketing Association—a government-sponsored enterprise—Sallie Mae was privatized in 2004 and has since focused on expanding its private education loan offerings and digital banking solutions.

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