SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $33.85 and last traded at $33.14, with a volume of 133710 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $32.18.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SLM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price target on SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on SLM from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Compass Point boosted their target price on SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, SLM presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $30.73.

SLM Trading Up 1.2%

The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.72, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $28.67 and a 200 day moving average of $27.84.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $374.97 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $359.83 million. SLM had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 20.73%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that SLM Co. will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. SLM’s payout ratio is 18.71%.

Insider Activity at SLM

In other SLM news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 3,000 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 35,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,096,324.25. The trade was a 7.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of SLM

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of SLM by 0.6% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,654,575 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $77,965,000 after purchasing an additional 15,662 shares during the period. Gator Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Gator Capital Management LLC now owns 405,805 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $11,918,000 after acquiring an additional 26,000 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in SLM by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,325,274 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $156,403,000 after buying an additional 149,629 shares in the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in SLM during the 1st quarter worth $375,000. Finally, Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in shares of SLM during the 1st quarter valued at $473,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

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.