Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Shares Purchased by Synovus Financial Corp

Synovus Financial Corp raised its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 18.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,482 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $472,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 31.5% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 19,768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $933,000 after purchasing an additional 4,732 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 73.2% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 10,144 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $479,000 after buying an additional 4,287 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 134.4% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,004 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $86,000 after buying an additional 1,149 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 53.8% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 69,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,290,000 after buying an additional 24,375 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 38,601 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,822,000 after acquiring an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 5.4 %

Shares of SYF stock opened at $63.59 on Thursday. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $35.29 and a 1-year high of $69.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $62.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $52.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.76 billion, a PE ratio of 8.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.63.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.76 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 16.64%. The business’s revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.48 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 6.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 13.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on SYF. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 price target on Synchrony Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com raised Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Synchrony Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $60.00 to $85.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $64.00 to $72.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.53.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $2,220,253.37. Following the sale, the insider now owns 127,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,291,879.13. This represents a 21.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.13, for a total value of $1,209,221.42. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 99,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,498,831.59. The trade was a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

About Synchrony Financial

Synchrony Financial, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer financial services company in the United States. It provides credit products, such as credit cards, commercial credit products, and consumer installment loans. The company also offers private label credit cards, dual co-brand and general purpose credit cards, short- and long-term installment loans, and consumer banking products; and deposit products, including certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, money market accounts, and savings accounts, and sweep and affinity deposits, as well as accepts deposits through third-party securities brokerage firms.