SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Releases FY24 Earnings Guidance

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) issued an update on its FY24 earnings guidance on Wednesday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of $2.60-$2.70 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of $2.70. SLM also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 2.600-2.700 EPS.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on SLM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of SLM in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a buy rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on SLM from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Citigroup upgraded SLM from a neutral rating to a buy rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $14.00 to $23.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of SLM from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of SLM from a c+ rating to a b rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $20.32.

SLM Stock Performance

SLM stock traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $22.10. 2,045,552 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,146,394. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21. The business has a 50-day moving average of $20.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $18.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.87 billion, a PE ratio of 9.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.16. SLM has a 52 week low of $12.26 and a 52 week high of $22.20.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.29. SLM had a return on equity of 36.86% and a net margin of 20.65%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.47 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that SLM will post 2.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 6th will be given a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 6th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.99%. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is 18.33%.

SLM declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, January 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $650.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to reacquire up to 14.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at SLM

In other news, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.72, for a total transaction of $1,949,296.16. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 52,751 shares in the company, valued at $1,093,000.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other SLM news, EVP Donna F. Vieira sold 12,308 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.27, for a total transaction of $249,483.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 126,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,564,155. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jonathan Boyles sold 94,078 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.72, for a total value of $1,949,296.16. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 52,751 shares in the company, valued at $1,093,000.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.91% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.