SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Given New $31.00 Price Target at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) had its price objective reduced by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $37.00 to $31.00 in a report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of SLM in a report on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised SLM from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $29.00 to $38.00 in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on SLM to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Barclays boosted their price objective on SLM from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on SLM from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.78.

SLM Price Performance

NASDAQ:SLM opened at $27.40 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.77, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.12. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.74. SLM has a 1 year low of $21.10 and a 1 year high of $34.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.02, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.17). SLM had a return on equity of 21.93% and a net margin of 15.46%.The firm had revenue of $403.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $370.26 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. SLM has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.000-3.100 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that SLM will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. SLM’s payout ratio is 26.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLM

In other news, EVP Kerri A. Palmer sold 55,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.21, for a total transaction of $1,771,550.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 119,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,841,139.13. This represents a 31.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in SLM during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. City Holding Co. purchased a new position in SLM during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new position in SLM in the first quarter worth approximately $45,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in SLM by 37.7% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,714 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 469 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in SLM by 355.4% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,899 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 1,482 shares in the last quarter. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.