Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Price Target Raised to $41.00

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its target price raised by BMO Capital Markets from $40.00 to $41.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has a market perform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on SYF. JMP Securities lifted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $35.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a market outperform rating in a research note on Friday, January 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com cut shares of Synchrony Financial from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $42.72.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 0.0 %

NYSE SYF opened at $44.67 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $26.59 and a twelve month high of $45.46. The company has a market cap of $18.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.61. The business’s fifty day moving average is $41.67 and its 200 day moving average is $36.97.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.44 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 13.49%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.35 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 5.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.35%.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total value of $264,584.78. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,534,503.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.26, for a total value of $5,557,556.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 660,353 shares in the company, valued at $27,246,164.78. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $264,584.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 valued at $6,106,106 in the last ninety days. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 0.7% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 38,247 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,649,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 35,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,518,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 34,804 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,329,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the period. MV Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,509 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $151,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 6,933 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $265,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% 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.