Royal Bank of Canada Reaffirms Outperform Rating for SLM (NASDAQ:SLM)

by · The Markets Daily

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM – Get Free Report)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by equities researchers at Royal Bank of Canada in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $26.00 price target on the credit services provider’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 18.72% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on SLM from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America started coverage on SLM in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $27.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on SLM from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Barclays dropped their price target on SLM from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a research note on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.67.

Read Our Latest Report on SLM

SLM Stock Down 3.9 %

NASDAQ:SLM traded down $0.90 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $21.90. 2,994,642 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,779,376. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $21.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.15. SLM has a 1 year low of $12.26 and a 1 year high of $23.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported ($0.23) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by ($0.30). SLM had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 41.84%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.11 earnings per share. Analysts predict that SLM will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.70, for a total value of $102,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 101,093 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,294,811.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SLM

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of SLM by 13.3% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,077 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 594 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in SLM by 3.1% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 21,959 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $478,000 after acquiring an additional 664 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in SLM by 5.3% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 18,708 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $428,000 after acquiring an additional 942 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in SLM by 9.9% during the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 11,017 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $240,000 after purchasing an additional 990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in SLM by 358.7% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,399 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,094 shares in the last quarter. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SLM Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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