Wells Fargo & Company Increases SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Price Target to $24.00

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) had its price target increased by Wells Fargo & Company from $22.00 to $24.00 in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. TheStreet upgraded SLM from a c+ rating to a b rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on SLM from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on SLM in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a buy rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on SLM from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Citigroup raised SLM from a neutral rating to a buy rating and upped their target price for the company from $14.00 to $23.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $20.32.

SLM Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ SLM opened at $20.78 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $20.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.22. SLM has a 1-year low of $12.26 and a 1-year high of $21.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.66, a PEG ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.16.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $725.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $379.20 million. SLM had a net margin of 20.65% and a return on equity of 36.86%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.33) EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that SLM will post 2.72 EPS for the current year.

SLM declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, January 24th that allows the company to repurchase $650.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase up to 14.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

SLM Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th were issued a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. SLM’s payout ratio is 18.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of SLM stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.72, for a total transaction of $1,949,296.16. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 52,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,093,000.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other SLM news, EVP Donna F. Vieira sold 12,308 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.27, for a total value of $249,483.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 126,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,564,155. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.72, for a total value of $1,949,296.16. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 52,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,093,000.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of SLM by 46.8% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,903 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $129,000 after acquiring an additional 1,883 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in SLM by 1,373.3% in the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,326 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236 shares in the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP boosted its stake in SLM by 19.6% in the first quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 594,514 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $12,954,000 after acquiring an additional 97,442 shares in the last quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in SLM in the first quarter valued at $207,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in SLM by 59.0% in the first quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 593,201 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $12,926,000 after acquiring an additional 220,154 shares in the last quarter. 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.