Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC Reduces Position in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) by 39.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,190 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 20,177 shares during the quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in SLM were worth $860,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in SLM in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Waldron Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of SLM by 358.7% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,399 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 1,094 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of SLM during the fourth quarter worth approximately $86,000. 98.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLM

In other SLM news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.25, for a total value of $122,625.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 83,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,265,292.50. This trade represents a 5.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on SLM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on SLM from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Compass Point upped their price target on SLM from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price 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, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of SLM in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, SLM currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $29.82.

SLM Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SLM opened at $29.09 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $27.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.39. SLM Co. has a 12-month low of $19.27 and a 12-month high of $31.49. The firm has a market cap of $6.18 billion, a PE ratio of 10.98, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. Equities research analysts predict that SLM Co. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. SLM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.62%.

About SLM

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.