Fact based stock research
SLM (NasdaqGS:SLM)

US78442P1066

How to read the free ranks

For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".

Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".

Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.

Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.

(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).

(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.

SLM stock research in summary

salliemae.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 47 (worse than 53% compared with investment alternatives), SLM (Consumer Finance, USA) shares have somewhat below-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of SLM are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 61 (better than 61% of alternatives) but show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 47), and are riskily financed (Safety Rank of 38), which means above-average debt burdens. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 47, is a hold recommendation based on SLM's financial characteristics. As the company SLM's key financial metrics exhibit good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 61) but low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 47) and risky financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 38), it may be a risky investment, because debt in times of crises can make things worse. The good value, better than 61% of comparable companies, may indicate the company's future is challenging. If you believe that low growth is temporary or just due to a specific current event, you may conclude that the good value of the stock provides an attractive investment opportunity. Obermatt Premium subscribers can further check the stock’s Sentiment Ranks, which also flow into the Obermatt 360° View for investors. ...read more

Latest Obermatt Ranks


360° View^new
Sentiment Rank^new
Value Rank	61
Growth Rank	47
Safety Rank	38
Combined Rank	47

Country	USA
Industry	Consumer Finance
Index	NASDAQ, S&P MIDCAP
Size class	Large

19-Dec-2024. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.

Further information

Multiple opinions. One number.

Analysts rarely agree on a stock’s future. So, who do you believe? Obermatt translates those collective views into a single Sentiment Rank. That plus the financial ranks give you the ultimate 360° View. Sign up to access them.

Why popular stocks have low ratings

It’s easier said than done. When your stock drops, it’s easy to want to sell it and find a better performer. Think twice, or even three times, before trading. Those fees (especially the hidden ones) can eat up your gains.

Review the performance ranks of the individual metrics that form each investment strategy.

Research History: SLM

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	44	63	70	61
GROWTH
GROWTH	42	39	19	47
SAFETY
SAFETY	79	31	31	38
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	n/a	17	63	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	n/a	25	43	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 19-Dec-2024. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 30-Sep-2024. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better SLM is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	44	63	70	61
GROWTH
GROWTH	42	39	19	47
SAFETY
SAFETY	79	31	31	38
COMBINED
COMBINED	91	30	24	47

Last update of combined financial performance: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of SLM the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 61 (better than 61% compared with alternatives), SLM shares are more attractively priced than the majority of comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for SLM. Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) is 78 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 78% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning SLM's profit levels. The same is valid for Price-to-Book Capital (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Book Rank of 41, which means that the stock price is lower as regards to invested capital than for 41% of comparable investments. On the other hand, Price-to-Sales is less favorable than 66% of alternatives (only 34% of peers have an even less favorable ratio). The same is valid for dividend yield, which is lower than 34% of comparable companies, making the stock more expensive as regards to the company's expected dividend payouts. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 61, is a buy recommendation based on SLM's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. This is a puzzling picture, because it means that profits are high while dividends are low. Since the stock price is low compared with invested capital but high in respect to expected revenues, it means that the company has more invested capital than peers for generating the same amount of revenue. Since profits are higher, it could be a "cash cow" situation (using the classic Boston Consulting BCG matrix naming convention) where the company is on a downward trend, still living from the profits of past products. As the company pays low dividends, it may harbor the opinion that a turnaround is possible, and it rather invests the cash than pay it out to shareholders, thus sealing the company's fate early. Any investment optimism should only be a buy trigger once thorough research is completed. We recommend further analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks, including the 360° View, before making an investment decision, which is especially important in this case, as the financial indicators are inconclusive. ...read more

VALUE METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	38	34	45	34
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	97	85	88	78
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	27	28	35	41
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	45	67	65	66
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	44	63	70	61

Last update of Value Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of SLM; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 47 (better than 47% compared with alternatives), SLM shows a below-average growth dynamic in its industry. There is limited momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for SLM. Capital Growth has a rank of 61, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its invested capital more than 31% of its competitors. Investors welcomed this, visible in the Stock Returns rank of 67 (above 67% of alternative investments). But Sales Growth has only a rank of 47, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow less than 53% of its competitors, and Profit Growth is also low at a rank of 31. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 47, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. This is an ambiguous picture. Revenue growth and capital growth are strong, but the growth in profit, which seems good, can also be an indication that growth momentum may be negative. The fact that stock returns have been above average doesn't help much, as stock returns are less reliable in showing a company’s future growth potential. Prices may perform well for the simple reason that investors were too pessimistic in the past and are now correcting their opinions and moving the stock price to a more reasonable level. As the growth picture is mixed for SLM, investors may want to look at value and sentiment indicators for a well-rounded picture of this stock. While momentum is a popular investment factor, the value aspect might be the more important one, in the longer term. We recommend analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks to arrive at a 360° View of the stock purchase case, especially since the growth performance is mixed here. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	25	23	19	47
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	n/a	59	77	31
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	n/a	7	17	61
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	81	85	33	67
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	42	39	19	47

Last update of Growth Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of SLM.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 38 (better than 38% compared with alternatives), the company SLM has financing practices on the riskier side, which means that their overall debt burden is above the industry average. This doesn't mean that the business of SLM is also risky, it only means that the company is on the riskier side in respect to bankruptcy in case things turn sour, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, with just one indicator above average for SLM and the other two below average. Leverage is at a rank of 52 meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 52% of its competitors.Refinancing is at a rank of 37, which means that the portion of the debt about to be refinanced is above-average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 63% of its competitors. Liquidity is at a rank of 37, meaning that the company generates less profit to service its debt than 63% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 38 (worse than 62% compared with alternatives), SLM has a financing structure that is riskier than that of its competitors. This is an indication that the company is on the riskier side when it comes to debt service. There is only below-market average liquidity, and a short-term refinancing issue might be around the corner. But in the long-term, the debt levels of SLM are on the safer side. Investors may have a short-term debt challenge and liquidity issues with SLM and should also compare Obermatt’s Value, Growth, and Sentiment Ranks before making a decision. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	54	44	50	52
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	95	31	33	37
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	78	37	28	37
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	79	31	31	38

Last update of Safety Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of SLM and the more cash is available to service its debt.

Sentiment Metrics in Detail

SENTIMENT	2021	2022	2023	2024
ANALYST OPINIONS
ANALYST OPINIONS	n/a	90	87	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	n/a	13	25	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	n/a	9	86	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	n/a	22	22	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	n/a	17	63	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for SLM.
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