SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Shares Cross Above 50 Day Moving Average on Analyst Downgrade

SLM Corporation (NASDAQ:SLM) shares passed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Wednesday after Zacks Research upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $21.78 and traded as high as $22.44. SLM shares last traded at $21.88, with a volume of 1,430,890 shares.

Several other research firms have also commented on SLM. 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 research report on Thursday, April 9th. 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 research report on Thursday, April 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $28.00 price target on shares of SLM in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target on shares of SLM in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of SLM from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.80.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLM

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of SLM by 19.4% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of SLM in the third quarter worth $69,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of SLM by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,649 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $207,000 after acquiring an additional 669 shares in the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its stake in shares of SLM by 11.4% in the third quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 8,315 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $230,000 after acquiring an additional 853 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of SLM in the first quarter worth $263,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

SLM Trading Up 1.1%

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $21.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.42. The firm has a market cap of $4.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.59, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

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

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 4th will be given a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 4th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. SLM’s payout ratio is 14.40%.

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.