SLM Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:SLM)

SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders purchased 5,628 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 458% compared to the typical volume of 1,008 put options.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.57, for a total value of $1,142,800.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 43,163 shares in the company, valued at $1,233,166.91. The trade was a 48.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SLM. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of SLM by 470.6% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,126,756 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $31,076,000 after purchasing an additional 929,292 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in SLM by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 34,709 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $957,000 after acquiring an additional 1,436 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in SLM during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,107,000. Invst LLC raised its position in SLM by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Invst LLC now owns 40,896 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,128,000 after acquiring an additional 703 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SLM in the fourth quarter valued at about $140,442,000. 98.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SLM shares. Compass Point upped their target price on SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of SLM from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, SLM currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.45.

SLM Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of SLM traded down $0.38 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $30.04. The company had a trading volume of 1,905,947 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,036,569. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $29.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.29. 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 has a 1 year low of $19.39 and a 1 year high of $32.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.34, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.23.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.06). SLM had a net margin of 20.73% and a return on equity of 31.66%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that SLM will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.62%.

SLM Company 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.