Barclays Has Lowered Expectations for SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Stock Price

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) had its price objective cut by Barclays from $35.00 to $27.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. Barclays‘s target price suggests a potential upside of 22.49% from the company’s current price.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on SLM. Zacks Research upgraded shares of SLM from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings lowered SLM from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on SLM from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Compass Point upgraded shares of SLM from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.70.

SLM Stock Performance

SLM traded up $0.40 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $22.04. 477,465 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,794,930. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $22.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.44. SLM has a 52-week low of $17.77 and a 52-week high of $34.97.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The credit services provider reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.17. SLM had a return on equity of 34.79% and a net margin of 26.04%.The company had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $383.43 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.50 earnings per share. SLM has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700-2.800 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that SLM will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in SLM by 33.4% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 547,724 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $16,087,000 after acquiring an additional 137,285 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP increased its position in SLM by 616.6% in the third quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 109,485 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,031,000 after purchasing an additional 94,207 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in SLM by 139.5% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 160,272 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,337,000 after purchasing an additional 93,364 shares during the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of SLM in the 3rd quarter worth $1,131,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of SLM in the 3rd quarter worth about $951,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

SLM Company Profile

SLM Corporation, operating as Sallie Mae Bank, is a leading U.S.-based consumer banking company specializing in education financing and related banking products. The company provides a range of private student loans for undergraduate and graduate studies, Parent PLUS loans, and specialized financing for career and certificate programs. In addition to its core lending services, Sallie Mae offers deposit products including savings accounts, checking accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and credit cards tailored to students and young adults.

Founded in 1972 as the Student Loan Marketing Association—a government-sponsored enterprise—Sallie Mae was privatized in 2004 and has since focused on expanding its private education loan offerings and digital banking solutions.