SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Stock Price Target Cut by Royal Bank Of Canada

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) had its target price cut by analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada from $28.00 to $26.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada‘s price target points to a potential upside of 31.61% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on SLM. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on SLM from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Barclays lowered their price objective on SLM from $26.00 to $22.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on SLM from $25.00 to $22.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on SLM from $28.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of SLM in a report on Monday, September 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, SLM currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $26.67.

SLM Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SLM traded down $2.00 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $19.76. The company had a trading volume of 3,573,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,045,785. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.32. The company has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.50, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.96. SLM has a 12-month low of $17.77 and a 12-month high of $31.06. The company has a fifty day moving average of $24.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.03.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The credit services provider reported ($0.19) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by ($0.36). The company had revenue of $375.47 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $453.34 million. SLM had a return on equity of 33.81% and a net margin of 26.09%. SLM’s revenue for the quarter was down 31.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.63 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that SLM will post 3.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of SLM

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SLM. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in SLM during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $455,576,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC bought a new position in SLM in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $169,136,000. Azora Capital LP bought a new position in SLM in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $97,917,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in SLM during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $39,251,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in SLM during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $37,268,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.94% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting SLM

Here are the key news stories impacting SLM this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Private education loan originations increased 15% year over year to $3.4 billion, while graduate-loan originations rose 119%. SLM also repurchased 5.1 million shares for $132.2 million, supporting per-share value over the longer term. Sallie Mae Reports $32.3 Million Third-Quarter Loss as Originations Rise 15%
• Positive Sentiment: Sixth Street committed to purchase $1.5 billion of student loans annually, potentially providing SLM with a recurring source of loan-sale liquidity and balance-sheet flexibility. The company also announced a fourth-quarter dividend payable December 15. SLM: 3 Key Takeaways for Long-Term Investors
• Negative Sentiment: SLM reported a third-quarter net loss of $32.3 million, or $0.19 per share, compared with earnings of $0.63 per share a year earlier. Revenue fell 31.3% year over year to approximately $375.5 million, below the roughly $453.3 million analyst expectation. Sallie Mae Swings To Q3 Loss
• Negative Sentiment: The company cut fiscal 2026 EPS guidance to $1.95-$2.05 from $3.10-$3.20, well below the $3.12 consensus estimate. Third-quarter net charge-offs reached $90 million, provisions for credit losses totaled $213.7 million, and delinquencies were 4.2% of loans in repayment, highlighting worsening credit performance. Sallie Mae Cuts Full-Year View After Logging Higher Charge-Offs

About SLM

SLM Corp., commonly known as Sallie Mae, is a financial services company focused on helping students and families finance higher education. Its primary business is the origination and servicing of private education loans, which can help cover tuition, fees, books, housing and other eligible education-related expenses not fully covered by federal student aid.

The company offers private student loans for undergraduate and graduate education, as well as loans for career-training programs and other education needs.