SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Hits New 1-Year High Following Dividend Announcement

SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $28.99 and last traded at $28.79, with a volume of 157370 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $28.57.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on SLM from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of SLM from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $30.00 price target (up from $27.00) on shares of SLM in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $27.90.

SLM Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $6.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a fifty day moving average of $27.18 and a 200-day moving average of $23.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.06). SLM had a net margin of 22.18% and a return on equity of 35.92%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that SLM Co. will post 2.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.25, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 5.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in SLM in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in SLM in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in SLM by 358.7% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,399 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,094 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in SLM in the third quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of SLM by 110.3% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,404 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $101,000 after buying an additional 2,310 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

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.