In Brief: Sallie Mae Parent Has 3% Profit Gain in 4Q

SLM Holding Corp., the parent of Sallie Mae, said Thursday that fourth-quarter earnings rose 3% compared to the same period last year.

The company reported net income of $110 million, or 66 cents per diluted share, for the three months ended Dec. 31. For the year, the company earned $501 million, or $2.95 per diluted share, a 2% drop from 1997.

The company, which buys student loans from banks and packages them into securities, said it purchased $2.5 billion of student loans in the fourth quarter, compared with $2.0 billion in the third quarter and $2.5 billion in the fourth quarter of 1997.

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