SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM) Shares Sold by Farther Finance Advisors LLC

Farther Finance Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM) by 22.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,844 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 3,429 shares during the quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC’s holdings in SLM were worth $351,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Private Trust Co. NA increased its holdings in SLM by 86.4% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of SLM by 355.4% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,899 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,482 shares during the last quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of SLM during the 4th quarter worth approximately $114,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of SLM by 489.7% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,476 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $123,000 after purchasing an additional 3,717 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the 4th quarter worth approximately $205,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at SLM

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.15, for a total value of $93,450.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 35,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,096,324.25. This trade represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on SLM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on SLM from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $40.00 price objective (up previously from $33.00) on shares of SLM in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Barclays upped their target price on shares of SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.30.

SLM Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of SLM opened at $31.24 on Wednesday. SLM Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $19.39 and a fifty-two week high of $34.55. The company’s fifty day moving average is $30.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.29. The firm has a market cap of $6.56 billion, a PE ratio of 11.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.21. SLM had a return on equity of 31.25% and a net margin of 21.05%. The firm had revenue of $374.97 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $359.83 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that SLM Corporation will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 5th were paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 5th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.71%.

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.