Goldentree Asset Management LP Decreases Stake in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

Goldentree Asset Management LP cut its stake in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) by 10.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,578,283 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 190,988 shares during the period. SLM accounts for about 2.9% of Goldentree Asset Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Goldentree Asset Management LP owned about 0.74% of SLM worth $36,021,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of SLM by 9.9% in the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 11,017 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 990 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in SLM by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 816,274 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,788,000 after buying an additional 26,064 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in SLM by 114.6% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 228,239 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,971,000 after buying an additional 121,886 shares during the last quarter. Invst LLC acquired a new stake in SLM during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $807,000. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 12,461,356 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $271,626,000 after acquiring an additional 674,424 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

SLM Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SLM opened at $27.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market cap of $5.78 billion, a PE ratio of 9.48, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.16. SLM Co. has a one year low of $14.03 and a one year high of $28.22. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $23.25 and a 200 day moving average of $21.92.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported ($0.23) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.30). SLM had a return on equity of 35.92% and a net margin of 22.18%. The company had revenue of $652.64 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $363.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.11 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that SLM Co. will post 2.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This is an increase from SLM’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. SLM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on SLM. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of SLM in a report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective 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 lowered their target price on SLM from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America started coverage on SLM in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $27.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $25.45.

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.