SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Price Target Raised to $40.00

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) had its price target increased by TD Cowen from $39.00 to $40.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on SLM. Weiss Ratings raised SLM from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on SLM from $37.00 to $31.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of SLM from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $29.00 price objective (down from $38.00) on shares of SLM in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of SLM from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 25th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.67.

SLM Stock Up 1.7%

SLM stock opened at $30.66 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.23 billion, a PE ratio of 10.76, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.14. SLM has a 1 year low of $23.81 and a 1 year high of $34.97. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 14th. The credit services provider reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter. SLM had a return on equity of 30.13% and a net margin of 21.76%.The company had revenue of ($3.44) million for the quarter. SLM has set its FY 2022 guidance at $2.800-$3.000 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that SLM will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 4th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 4th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SLM. City Holding Co. acquired a new position in SLM during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new position in shares of SLM during the 1st quarter worth about $45,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the first quarter valued at about $62,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of SLM in the third quarter valued at about $69,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in SLM during the first quarter worth about $94,000. Institutional investors own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

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.