SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Shares of SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the ten research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $33.40.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $40.00 target price (up from $33.00) on shares of SLM in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of SLM in a report on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised SLM from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $38.00 in a report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th.

SLM Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SLM opened at $32.83 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $32.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.21. The stock has a market cap of $6.89 billion, a PE ratio of 11.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34. SLM has a one year low of $19.39 and a one year high of $34.97.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $374.97 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $359.83 million. SLM had a return on equity of 31.25% and a net margin of 21.05%. SLM's quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.27 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that SLM will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 5th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 5th. SLM's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.71%.

Insider Transactions at SLM

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.15, for a total transaction of $93,450.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 35,195 shares in the company, valued at $1,096,324.25. The trade was a 7.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SLM

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of SLM. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in SLM during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the first quarter valued at about $45,000. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of SLM by 37.7% during the first 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 last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of SLM by 355.4% during the first 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 last quarter. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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