Royal Bank of Canada Raises SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Price Target to $25.00

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) had its price target boosted by Royal Bank of Canada from $24.00 to $25.00 in a research note published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of SLM in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a buy rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of SLM from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of SLM from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday. Citigroup raised shares of SLM from a neutral rating to a buy rating and increased their price objective for the company from $14.00 to $23.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, Wedbush increased their price objective on shares of SLM from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, SLM currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $21.32.

SLM Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of SLM traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $21.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,029,630 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,141,878. The company’s 50-day moving average is $20.91 and its 200-day moving average is $18.17. SLM has a 52-week low of $12.26 and a 52-week high of $22.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.85, a PEG ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.18. SLM had a net margin of 25.15% and a return on equity of 47.72%. The company had revenue of $837.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $376.43 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.47 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that SLM will post 2.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.75%.

SLM declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, January 24th that permits the company to buyback $650.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other SLM news, EVP Donna F. Vieira sold 12,308 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.27, for a total transaction of $249,483.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 126,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,564,155. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Donna F. Vieira sold 12,308 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.27, for a total value of $249,483.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 126,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,564,155. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 52,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,093,000.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.91% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in SLM during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,785,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of SLM in the third quarter worth approximately $713,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of SLM by 13.6% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 10,266 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $196,000 after acquiring an additional 1,233 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in SLM by 25.5% in the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 155,595 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,092,000 after buying an additional 31,595 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in SLM by 31.2% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 684,103 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,317,000 after buying an additional 162,853 shares during the period. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.