SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twelve brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $29.80.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on SLM shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of SLM from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Compass Point upgraded SLM from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Barclays raised their target price on SLM from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley set a $27.00 target price on SLM in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $28.00 price target on SLM in a report on Friday, April 10th.

SLM Stock Performance

SLM opened at $25.60 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.59. The company has a market cap of $4.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.09, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s 50 day moving average is $22.83 and its 200 day moving average is $23.56. SLM has a 12-month low of $17.77 and a 12-month high of $34.97.

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

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 4th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 4th. SLM’s payout ratio is presently 14.40%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SLM

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