SouthState Corp Buys Shares of 29,500 SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

SouthState Corp acquired a new position in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 29,500 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $814,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SLM. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its position in SLM by 86.4% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in shares of SLM during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of SLM by 32.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,849 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in SLM in the fourth quarter worth approximately $86,000. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in SLM during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $114,000. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SLM Price Performance

NASDAQ SLM opened at $29.26 on Tuesday. SLM Co. has a twelve month low of $19.39 and a twelve month high of $32.65. The stock has a market cap of $6.16 billion, a PE ratio of 11.04, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.32.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.06). SLM had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 20.73%. On average, research analysts forecast that SLM Co. will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. SLM’s payout ratio is 19.62%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.57, for a total transaction of $1,142,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 43,163 shares in the company, valued at $1,233,166.91. This trade represents a 48.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on SLM shares. Barclays raised their price target on shares of SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on SLM from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, SLM presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.45.

SLM Profile

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.