SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Price Target Raised to $32.00

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) had its price target boosted by Morgan Stanley from $26.00 to $32.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and set a $30.00 price objective (up previously from $27.00) on shares of SLM in a report on Monday, December 9th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of SLM in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of SLM from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of SLM in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on SLM in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $27.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $27.27.

SLM Stock Up 1.2 %

SLM stock opened at $27.79 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $5.90 billion, a PE ratio of 9.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.21. SLM has a 12 month low of $18.04 and a 12 month high of $28.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.62.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported ($0.23) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by ($0.30). The company had revenue of $652.64 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $363.40 million. SLM had a net margin of 22.18% and a return on equity of 35.92%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.11 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that SLM will post 2.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLM Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a $0.13 dividend. This is a positive change from SLM’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.12%.

Insider Transactions at SLM

In other SLM news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.25, for a total value of $122,625.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 83,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,265,292.50. The trade was a 5.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SLM

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of SLM by 3,800.6% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,406,384 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $55,034,000 after buying an additional 2,344,691 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in SLM by 107.1% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,366,642 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $49,202,000 after purchasing an additional 1,224,015 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in SLM by 253.8% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,290,997 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,840,000 after purchasing an additional 926,120 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of SLM by 23.9% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,453,521 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $92,589,000 after purchasing an additional 859,625 shares during the period. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of SLM by 69.1% in the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,002,825 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $20,849,000 after buying an additional 409,624 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.