SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Releases FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) issued an update on its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 3.100-3.200 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 3.150. The company issued revenue guidance of -.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SLM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on SLM from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Zacks Research lowered shares of SLM from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Compass Point upgraded shares of SLM from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $23.00 to $22.00 in a report on Monday, March 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on SLM from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $28.00 price objective on SLM in a research note on Friday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.80.

SLM Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of SLM traded down $0.34 on Friday, hitting $23.84. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 676,718 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,345,236. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $23.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.32. SLM has a fifty-two week low of $17.77 and a fifty-two week high of $33.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.94.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $401.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $409.22 million. SLM had a return on equity of 34.80% and a net margin of 26.42%.The company’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.32 earnings per share. SLM has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.100-3.200 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that SLM will post 3.16 EPS for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. SLM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.40%.

More SLM News

Here are the key news stories impacting SLM this week:

• Positive Sentiment: SLM maintained or modestly raised its FY 2026 EPS guidance to 3.10-3.20, which may help reassure investors that full-year profitability remains intact despite the quarter’s miss. Sallie Mae Reports Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighting the stock’s undervalued case and the potential benefit from student loan reform could support sentiment by suggesting upside if policy or valuation expectations improve. SLM Heads Into Earnings On Student Loan Reform Narrative and Undervalued Debate
• Neutral Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly common dividend of $0.13 per share, reinforcing capital-return discipline but not likely to be a major near-term driver for the stock. Sallie Mae Declares Dividends on Preferred Stock Series B and Common Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Q2 results missed expectations, with EPS of $0.29 versus $0.46 expected and revenue of $401.1 million below estimates, signaling softer-than-expected operating performance. Sallie Mae misses Q2 CY2026 sales expectations
• Negative Sentiment: The weaker quarter also included a year-over-year decline in earnings and slightly lower revenue, which may keep pressure on shares until investors see a clearer turnaround. Sallie Mae misses Q2 earnings and revenue estimates

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SLM

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in SLM by 33.4% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP lifted its stake in SLM by 616.6% during the third quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 109,485 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,031,000 after purchasing an additional 94,207 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in shares of SLM by 31.3% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 53,673 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,452,000 after purchasing an additional 12,793 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in SLM in the first quarter valued at about $263,000. Finally, Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in shares of SLM in the third quarter worth about $69,000. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.