SLM (SLM) Scheduled to Post Earnings on Wednesday

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) will issue its quarterly earnings data after the market closes on Wednesday, April 24th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $0.98 per share for the quarter. Parties that are interested in registering for the company’s conference call can do so using this link.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $725.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $379.20 million. SLM had a net margin of 20.65% and a return on equity of 36.86%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.33) EPS. On average, analysts expect SLM to post $3 EPS for the current fiscal year and $3 EPS for the next fiscal year.

SLM Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SLM opened at $20.66 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $20.67 and a 200 day moving average of $17.84. The stock has a market cap of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.16. SLM has a 12 month low of $12.26 and a 12 month high of $21.94. 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 announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $650.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Trading of SLM

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in SLM by 66.9% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 790,210 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $15,110,000 after purchasing an additional 316,730 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its holdings in SLM by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 127,224 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,433,000 after purchasing an additional 1,573 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of SLM by 48.3% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 216,724 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,144,000 after acquiring an additional 70,614 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of SLM by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,136,784 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $633,575,000 after acquiring an additional 1,151,557 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of SLM by 194.4% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 338,062 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,464,000 after acquiring an additional 223,237 shares in the last quarter. 98.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of SLM from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $14.00 to $23.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of SLM from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of SLM in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of SLM from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of SLM from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. 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, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.95.

About SLM

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.