Gabelli Funds LLC Sells 12,000 Shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

Gabelli Funds LLC reduced its holdings in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) by 8.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 138,000 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 12,000 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in SLM were worth $3,007,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in SLM. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in SLM by 1,373.3% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,326 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in SLM by 81.4% during the fourth 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 SLM in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC increased its stake in SLM by 37.0% in the 1st quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 1,828 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 494 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in shares of SLM during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. 98.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

SLM Price Performance

NASDAQ SLM traded down $0.27 during trading on Friday, reaching $22.73. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,919,754 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,832,806. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.94 billion, a PE ratio of 7.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $21.27 and a 200 day moving average of $20.81. SLM Co. has a one year low of $12.26 and a one year high of $23.95.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.32. SLM had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 41.84%. The business had revenue of $783.28 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $368.97 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.10 earnings per share. Analysts expect that SLM Co. will post 2.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 5th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. SLM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on SLM shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on SLM from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of SLM from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of SLM from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Wedbush upped their price objective on SLM from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on SLM from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $24.00.

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.