Sallie Mae beats 4Q profit forecasts but outlook falls short

NEWARK, Del. (AP) — SLM Corp. on Wednesday reported fourth-quarter earnings that beat Wall Street’s expectations but issued a weaker-than-expected forecast for profit this year.

The Newark, Delaware-based student loan company said it had net income of $89.8 million, or 20 cents a share, in the fourth quarter.

The results topped Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of five analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 18 cents per share.

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The company posted net interest income of $187.8 million in the period.

For the year, the company reported profit of $274.3 million, or 59 cents per share. Net interest income was reported as $702.5 million.

Sallie Mae said it expects full-year 2016 earnings in the range of 49 cents to 51 cents per share. Analysts on average were expecting 65 cents a share, according to FactSet.

Sallie Mae shares have declined 17 percent since the beginning of the year. The stock closed Wednesday at $5.41, a decrease of 44 percent in the last 12 months.

In after-hours trading following the earnings report, the stock dipped 16 cents, or 3 percent, to $5.25.

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