SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Trading Down 5.4% – Time to Sell?

SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM)’s share price traded down 5.4% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $21.37 and last traded at $21.7980. 636,756 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 3,379,198 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.05.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on SLM shares. Barclays boosted their target price on SLM from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on SLM from $26.00 to $22.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $27.00 price objective on SLM in a report on Friday, April 24th. Compass Point upgraded SLM from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of SLM from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.80.

SLM Price Performance

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 firm’s 50-day moving average price is $22.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.18 billion, a PE ratio of 6.13, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.98.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.40. SLM had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 26.42%.The company had revenue of $559.99 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $486.05 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter 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 analysts forecast that SLM Corporation will post 3.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 4th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.40%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in SLM during the third quarter valued at $69,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of SLM by 19.4% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of SLM by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,649 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $207,000 after purchasing an additional 669 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in shares of SLM during the 1st quarter worth about $263,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 1,319 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.