Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF – Free Report) by 11.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,415 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 745 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $216,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 34.3% in the first quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 2,775 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 708 shares during the last quarter. Commerce Bank increased its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 17,510 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $509,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 252,152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,333,000 after purchasing an additional 7,288 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 15.2% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 71,354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,075,000 after purchasing an additional 9,399 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Achmea Investment Management B.V. grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 19.7% during the first quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 96,163 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,797,000 after purchasing an additional 15,796 shares during the period. 92.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SYF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $37.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 14th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Friday, July 14th. StockNews.com raised Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 26th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $37.00 to $38.00 in a report on Monday, June 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.00.
Synchrony Financial Stock Performance
SYF opened at $34.77 on Monday. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $26.59 and a 52-week high of $40.88. The business’s fifty day moving average is $34.18 and its 200-day moving average is $32.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.20. The firm has a market cap of $14.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.60.
Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.10 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 19.79% and a net margin of 12.90%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 4.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 31st were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 28th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. This is an increase from Synchrony Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.52%.
Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, April 25th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.
Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial
In related news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 36,610 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.50, for a total value of $1,263,045.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 565,240 shares in the company, valued at $19,500,780. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider David P. Melito sold 15,015 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $525,525.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,960 shares in the company, valued at $488,600. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 36,610 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.50, for a total transaction of $1,263,045.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 565,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,500,780. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.65% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Synchrony Financial Company Profile
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 cards, 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 to retail and commercial customers, as well as accepts deposits through third-party securities brokerage firms.
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