Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Has $77,000 Holdings in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC trimmed its position in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) by 91.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,020 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 42,051 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in SLM were worth $77,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SLM. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in SLM by 81.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,328 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its stake in SLM by 51.9% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,632 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 1,925 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in SLM by 10.4% in the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 9,033 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $123,000 after acquiring an additional 851 shares during the period. MQS Management LLC acquired a new position in SLM during the third quarter worth $144,000. Finally, Versor Investments LP bought a new position in shares of SLM during the third quarter valued at $163,000. 98.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at SLM

In related news, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.72, for a total value of $1,949,296.16. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 52,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,093,000.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

SLM Stock Performance

SLM stock opened at $21.63 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $4.76 billion, a PE ratio of 6.76, a PEG ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.67. SLM Co. has a 1 year low of $12.26 and a 1 year high of $22.37. The company’s 50-day moving average is $20.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.36.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.18. SLM had a net margin of 25.15% and a return on equity of 45.65%. The business had revenue of $837.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $376.43 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.47 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that SLM Co. will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, January 24th that allows the company to buyback $650.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SLM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of SLM from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on SLM from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. TheStreet upgraded SLM from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on SLM from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on SLM in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, SLM currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $21.32.

SLM 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.