SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Stock Crosses Above 50 Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM)’s share price crossed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 50-day moving average of $22.25 and traded as high as $23.56. SLM shares last traded at $22.95, with a volume of 3,038,339 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $28.00 target price on shares of SLM in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of SLM from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of SLM from $26.00 to $22.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of SLM from $32.00 to $29.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $27.00 price target on shares of SLM in a report on Friday, April 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.80.

SLM Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $22.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $23.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.98.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.40. SLM had a net margin of 26.42% and a return on equity of 34.80%. The firm had revenue of $559.99 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $486.05 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. SLM has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.100-3.200 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that SLM Corporation will post 3.14 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 4th were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 4th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.40%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in SLM by 139.5% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 160,272 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,337,000 after purchasing an additional 93,364 shares during the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in SLM during the 3rd quarter valued at about $951,000. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in SLM by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 36,889 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,210,000 after purchasing an additional 2,109 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in SLM by 33.4% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 547,724 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $16,087,000 after purchasing an additional 137,285 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP grew its holdings in SLM by 616.6% during the 3rd quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 109,485 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,031,000 after purchasing an additional 94,207 shares during the last quarter. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About SLM

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.