Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Price Target Increased to $47.00 by Analysts at Evercore ISI

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its target price increased by equities research analysts at Evercore ISI from $45.00 to $47.00 in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Evercore ISI’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 9.58% from the company’s previous close.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 18th. JMP Securities raised their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $35.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $39.24.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of SYF stock traded up $0.61 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $42.89. 593,916 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,457,111. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $26.59 and a 52-week high of $43.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $40.10 and a 200 day moving average of $35.17. The company has a market cap of $17.45 billion, a PE ratio of 8.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.61.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.10. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 17.37%. The firm had revenue of $5.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.26 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider David P. Melito sold 7,283 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.99, for a total transaction of $283,964.17. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 14,183 shares in the company, valued at $552,995.17. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Synchrony Financial news, insider David P. Melito sold 7,283 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.99, for a total transaction of $283,964.17. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 14,183 shares in the company, valued at $552,995.17. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $264,584.78. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 152,604 shares in the company, valued at $6,534,503.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 148,158 shares of company stock worth $6,106,106 over the last ninety days. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of SYF. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 853.5% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,218,641 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $216,471,000 after purchasing an additional 5,566,481 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $182,739,000. Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 158.9% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,095,762 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $94,609,000 after buying an additional 1,900,216 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $61,172,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 362.0% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,981,883 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $75,688,000 after purchasing an additional 1,552,946 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.