SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Hits New 52-Week High Following Dividend Announcement

SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $21.97 and last traded at $21.95, with a volume of 566427 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $21.32.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 6th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. SLM’s payout ratio is 18.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. TheStreet upgraded SLM from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on SLM from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on SLM from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Citigroup upgraded SLM from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $14.00 to $23.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, 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 objective on the stock. Three equities 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 presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.32.

SLM Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $20.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.21, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.16.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.29. SLM had a return on equity of 36.86% and a net margin of 20.65%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.47 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that SLM Co. will post 2.72 EPS for the current year.

SLM announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, January 24th that permits the company to repurchase $650.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to purchase up to 14.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Donna F. Vieira sold 12,308 shares of SLM stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 126,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,564,155. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was 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 directly owns 52,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,093,000.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Donna F. Vieira sold 12,308 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 126,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,564,155. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the 4th quarter worth about $1,785,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of SLM in the 3rd quarter valued at about $713,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its holdings in shares of SLM by 25.5% in the 3rd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 155,595 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,092,000 after purchasing an additional 31,595 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in shares of SLM by 31.2% in the 3rd 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 purchasing an additional 162,853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caxton Associates LP purchased a new stake in shares of SLM in the 3rd quarter valued at about $896,000. 98.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.