SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) Shares Sold by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama lessened its holdings in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) by 2.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 264,163 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 7,021 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.12% of SLM worth $6,041,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in shares of SLM during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Waldron Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in SLM during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in SLM by 358.7% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,399 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,094 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of SLM in the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of SLM in the 2nd quarter valued at about $60,000. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLM

In other SLM news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.25, for a total transaction of $122,625.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 83,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,265,292.50. The trade was a 5.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

SLM Stock Down 2.9 %

SLM stock opened at $26.87 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.29. SLM Co. has a one year low of $18.04 and a one year high of $28.22. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.21.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported ($0.23) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.30). SLM had a return on equity of 35.92% and a net margin of 22.18%. The firm had revenue of $652.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $363.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.11 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that SLM Co. will post 2.73 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a $0.13 dividend. This is a boost from SLM’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on SLM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on SLM from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of SLM in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America assumed coverage on SLM in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $27.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of SLM from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $26.80.

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.