Zacks Research Downgrades SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) to Hold

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $27.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Compass Point raised shares of SLM from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of SLM from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $28.00 price objective on shares of SLM in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $29.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, SLM presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.80.

SLM Stock Down 0.9%

SLM stock opened at $21.88 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $4.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.06, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.01. 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 company’s 50-day moving average price is $21.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.47. SLM has a 52 week low of $17.77 and a 52 week high of $34.97.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.40. The firm had revenue of $559.99 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $486.05 million. SLM had a net margin of 26.42% and a return on equity of 34.80%. SLM’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.40 EPS. SLM has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.100-3.200 EPS. On average, analysts expect that SLM will post 3.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 19.4% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares during the period. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of SLM during the third quarter worth approximately $69,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 9.6% during the fourth 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. Arkadios Wealth Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 11.4% during the third quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 8,315 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 853 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of SLM during the first quarter worth approximately $263,000. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.