Morgan Stanley Reaffirms Overweight Rating for SLM (NASDAQ:SLM)

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "overweight" rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley in a research report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. They presently have a $40.00 price objective on the credit services provider's stock, up from their previous price objective of $33.00. Morgan Stanley's price target suggests a potential upside of 18.87% from the company's current price.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Compass Point increased their price objective on SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays increased their price objective on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $31.82.

SLM Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of SLM stock opened at $33.65 on Wednesday. SLM has a fifty-two week low of $19.39 and a fifty-two week high of $33.94. The stock has a market cap of $7.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.05. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $374.97 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $359.83 million. SLM had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 20.73%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.27 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that SLM will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.15, for a total value of $93,450.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 35,195 shares in the company, valued at $1,096,324.25. This trade represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of SLM in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in shares of SLM by 86.4% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 971 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new position in shares of SLM in the 1st quarter worth about $45,000. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings 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 worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of SLM by 32.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,849 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.