Sifting through countless of stocks in the Consumer Finance industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Dave Inc. or SLM Corporation because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Dave Inc. and SLM Corporation compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Dave Inc. and SLM Corporation

Dave Inc. provides various financial products and services through its financial services platform in the United States. The company offers Budget, personal financial management tool that helps members with budgeting, and managing income and expenses; ExtraCash, a short-term liquidity alternative, which allows members to advance funds to their account through automated clearing house network and avoid a fee; Side Hustle, a job application portal to find supplemental or temporary work; and Surveys, which allows member to take paid surveys within the Dave mobile application. It also provides Dave Banking, a digital checking and demand deposit account. Dave Inc. was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

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 engages in the provision of retail deposit accounts, including certificates of deposit, money market accounts, and high-yield savings accounts; and interest-bearing omnibus accounts. The company was formerly known as New BLC Corporation and changed its name to SLM Corporation in December 2013. SLM Corporation was founded in 1972 and is headquartered in Newark, Delaware.

Latest Consumer Finance and Dave Inc., SLM Corporation Stock News

As of December 12, 2025, Dave Inc. had a $2.7 billion market capitalization, compared to the Consumer Finance median of $1.1 million. Dave Inc.’s stock is up 127.3% in 2025, down 4.5% in the previous five trading days and up 135.17% in the past year.

Currently, Dave Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 19.5. Dave Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $491.3 million with a 29.9% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 62.9%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $13.320 per share for the current fiscal year. Dave Inc. does not currently pay a dividend.

As of December 12, 2025, SLM Corporation had a $5.5 billion market cap, putting it in the 70th percentile of all stocks. SLM Corporation’s stock is down 2.5% in 2025, down 12.3% in the previous five trading days and up 2.54% in the past year.

Currently, SLM Corporation’s price-earnings ratio is 9.5. SLM Corporation’s trailing 12-month revenue is $1.5 billion with a 42.7% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 225.5%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $3.269 per share for the current fiscal year. SLM Corporation currently has a 1.9% dividend yield.

How We Compare Dave Inc. and SLM Corporation Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Dave Inc. and SLM Corporation’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Dave Inc. and SLM Corporation Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
Dave Inc.	DAVE	D
SLM Corporation	SLM	B

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

Dave Inc. has a Value Score of 28, which is Expensive. SLM Corporation has a Value Score of 65, which is Value.

The Value Stock Winner: SLM Corporation

As you can clearly see from the Value Grade breakdown above, SLM Corporation is considered to have better value than Dave Inc.. For investors who focus solely on a company’s valuation, SLM Corporation could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Dave Inc. and SLM Corporation’s Momentum Grades

Company	Ticker	Momentum
Dave Inc.	DAVE	A
SLM Corporation	SLM	C

Momentum grades help to uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.

Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.

Dave Inc. has a Momentum Score of 92, which is Very Strong. SLM Corporation has a Momentum Score of 45, which is Average.

The Momentum Grade Winner: Dave Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Momentum Grade breakdown above, Dave Inc. is considered to have stronger momentum compared to SLM Corporation. For those specifically looking for companies that have stronger momentum compared to other companies in the same industry, Dave Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Dave Inc. and SLM Corporation’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
Dave Inc.	DAVE	B
SLM Corporation	SLM	C

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Dave Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 75, which is Positive. SLM Corporation has a Earnings Estimate Score of 44, which is Neutral.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade Winner: Dave Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade breakdown above, Dave Inc. has a better Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade than SLM Corporation. For those who are specifically looking for companies with better short-term prospects when compared to other companies in the same industry, Dave Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Other Dave Inc. and SLM Corporation Grades

In addition to Momentum, Value and Estimate Revisions, A+ Investor also provides grades for Growth and Quality.

Growth investing builds on the idea that stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth outperform those of slower-growth companies. AAII measures growth through consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations.

AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the ranking of key metrics. Specifically, the quality grade is the percentile rank of the composite of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and F-Score.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Dave Inc. and SLM Corporation pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Dave Inc. or SLM Corporation Stock?

Overall, Dave Inc. stock has a Value Score of 28, Momentum Score of 92 and Estimate Revisions Score of 75.

SLM Corporation stock has a Value Score of 65, Momentum Score of 45 and Estimate Revisions Score of 44.

Comparing Dave Inc. and SLM Corporation’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.