SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Given Equal Weight Rating at Barclays

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM)‘s stock had its “equal weight” rating restated by Barclays in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $26.00 price objective on the credit services provider’s stock, down from their prior price objective of $30.00. Barclays‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 1.84% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of SLM from $26.00 to $22.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Compass Point raised shares of SLM from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of SLM from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $28.00 price objective on SLM in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on SLM from $32.00 to $29.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.40.

SLM Stock Performance

SLM stock opened at $25.53 on Tuesday. SLM has a fifty-two week low of $17.77 and a fifty-two week high of $34.97. The company has a market capitalization of $4.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.07, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.94. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $22.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.30.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.40. The firm had revenue of $559.99 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $486.05 million. SLM had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 26.42%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.40 earnings per share. SLM has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.100-3.200 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that SLM will post 3.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SLM

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SLM. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in SLM by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 21,350 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $627,000 after acquiring an additional 1,319 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of SLM in the first quarter worth $263,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of SLM by 33.4% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 547,724 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $16,087,000 after acquiring an additional 137,285 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of SLM by 118.2% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,995 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $131,000 after acquiring an additional 2,164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in SLM by 6.1% during the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 36,889 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,210,000 after purchasing an additional 2,109 shares during the last quarter. 98.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SLM Company Profile

SLM Corporation, operating as Sallie Mae Bank, is a leading U.S.-based consumer banking company specializing in education financing and related banking products. The company provides a range of private student loans for undergraduate and graduate studies, Parent PLUS loans, and specialized financing for career and certificate programs. In addition to its core lending services, Sallie Mae offers deposit products including savings accounts, checking accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and credit cards tailored to students and young adults.

Founded in 1972 as the Student Loan Marketing Association—a government-sponsored enterprise—Sallie Mae was privatized in 2004 and has since focused on expanding its private education loan offerings and digital banking solutions.