SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) Shares Purchased by Parkside Financial Bank & Trust

Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) by 13.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,266 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,233 shares during the quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust’s holdings in SLM were worth $196,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of SLM by 81.4% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,328 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of SLM in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of SLM by 51.9% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,632 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 1,925 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of SLM by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 7,891 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of SLM in the 3rd quarter worth about $144,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at SLM

In related news, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.72, for a total transaction of $1,949,296.16. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 52,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,093,000.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Donna F. Vieira sold 12,308 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.27, for a total transaction of $249,483.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 126,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,564,155. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.72, for a total transaction of $1,949,296.16. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 52,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,093,000.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

SLM Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SLM opened at $22.10 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $20.87 and a 200-day moving average of $18.14. The firm has a market cap of $4.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.16. SLM Co. has a twelve month low of $12.26 and a twelve month high of $22.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.29. SLM had a net margin of 20.65% and a return on equity of 36.86%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.47 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that SLM Co. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLM announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, January 24th that permits the company to buyback $650.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 14.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

SLM Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 6th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SLM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of SLM in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of SLM from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Citigroup raised shares of SLM from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $14.00 to $23.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of SLM from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of SLM from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $20.32.

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.