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SLM Corp. (SLM) Shares Cross 3% Yield Mark

By Dividend Channel Staff, Monday, August 8, 3:31 PM ET
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In trading on Monday, shares of SLM Corp. (NASDAQ:SLM) were yielding above the 3% mark based on its quarterly dividend (annualized to $0.40), with the stock changing hands as low as $11.60 on the day. Dividends are particularly important for investors to consider, because historically speaking dividends have provided a considerable share of the stock market's total return. To illustrate, suppose for example you purchased shares of the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) back on 12/31/1998 — you would have paid $123.31 per share. Fast forward to 12/31/2010 and each share was worth $125.75 on that date, a mere $2.44 or 2% increase over all those years. But now consider that you collected a whopping $20.53 per share in dividends over the same period, increasing your return to 18.6%. Even with dividends reinvested, that only amounts to an average annual total return of about 1.4%; so by comparison collecting a yield above 3% would appear considerably attractive if that yield is sustainable. SLM Corp. (NASDAQ:SLM) is an S&P 500 company, giving it special status as one of the large-cap companies making up the S&P 500 Index.

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In general, dividend amounts are not always predictable and tend to follow the ups and downs of profitability at each company. In the case of SLM Corp., looking at the history chart for SLM below can help in judging whether the most recent dividend is likely to continue, and in turn whether it is a reasonable expectation to expect a 3% annual yield.

SLM Dividend History
Date Div*
06/01/11 0.100
02/28/07 0.250
11/29/06 0.250
08/30/06 0.250
05/31/06 0.250
03/01/06 0.220
11/30/05 0.220
08/31/05 0.220
06/01/05 0.220
03/02/05 0.190
12/01/04 0.190
09/01/04 0.190
06/02/04 0.190
03/03/04 0.170
12/03/03 0.170
09/03/03 0.170
06/04/03 0.170
03/05/03 0.083
12/04/02 0.083
09/04/02 0.067
06/05/02 0.067
02/27/02 0.067
12/05/01 0.067
05/30/01 0.058
02/28/01 0.058
11/29/00 0.058
08/30/00 0.053
05/31/00 0.053
03/01/00 0.053
12/01/99 0.053
09/01/99 0.050
06/02/99 0.050
02/24/99 0.050
12/02/98 0.050
09/02/98 0.047
06/03/98 0.047
02/25/98 0.047
12/03/97 0.047
09/03/97 0.042
06/04/97 0.042
02/24/97 0.042
12/03/96 0.042
09/03/96 0.038
06/04/96 0.038
02/22/96 0.038
12/04/95 0.038
08/31/95 0.035
* Data may be adjusted for splits; we are not responsible for data errors; always verify data with the company.

According to the ETF Finder at ETF Channel, SLM makes up 2.28% of the Dynamic Financial Sector Portfolio ETF (AMEX:PFI) which is trading lower by about 7.5% on the day Monday.

     See what other ETFs contain SLM »
     See what other stocks are held by PFI »

SLM operates in the Credit Services & Lending sector, among companies like Cardtronics Inc (NASDAQ:CATM) which is down about 11.1% today, and World Acceptance Corp. (NASDAQ:WRLD) trading lower by about 4.6%. Below is a three month price history chart comparing the stock performance of SLM, versus CATM and WRLD.

SLM,CATM,WRLD Relative Performance Chart


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