SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.06 EPS

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The credit services provider reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.06), Zacks reports. SLM had a net margin of 22.18% and a return on equity of 35.92%. SLM updated its FY 2025 guidance to 3.000-3.100 EPS.

SLM Stock Down 1.0 %

SLM stock opened at $29.01 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.16 billion, a PE ratio of 10.11, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.21. SLM has a 12 month low of $18.84 and a 12 month high of $31.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.89.

SLM Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. SLM’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLM has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of SLM from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of SLM in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of SLM from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on SLM from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on SLM from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.82.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.25, for a total transaction of $122,625.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 83,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,265,292.50. This trade represents a 5.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.