Bank of America Raises Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Price Target to $44.00

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its price objective upped by Bank of America from $43.00 to $44.00 in a research note published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

SYF has been the topic of several other reports. Wolfe Research upgraded Synchrony Financial from an underperform rating to an outperform rating and raised their price target for the stock from $36.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Oppenheimer restated a market perform rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. StockNews.com lowered Synchrony Financial from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut Synchrony Financial from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and set a $40.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $42.72.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 0.8 %

Synchrony Financial stock opened at $44.66 on Thursday. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $26.59 and a 1-year high of $45.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.76.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.19). Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.49% and a return on equity of 16.01%. The business had revenue of $5.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.35 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

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

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SYF. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $55,000. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

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 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.