Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Cuts Stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 3,549,096 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 57,059 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 0.91% of Synchrony Financial worth $177,029,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 66.6% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 6,374,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $274,892,000 after purchasing an additional 2,548,180 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 402.8% during the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,520,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $71,739,000 after buying an additional 1,217,872 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 14.6% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,726,704 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $264,917,000 after buying an additional 727,649 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 400.2% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 842,539 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,751,000 after acquiring an additional 674,093 shares during the period. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 1,043.9% in the 2nd quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 655,173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,916,000 after acquiring an additional 597,900 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SYF has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. BTIG Research lowered shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. StockNews.com upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Compass Point raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.43.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:SYF opened at $65.99 on Friday. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $29.15 and a 1-year high of $67.76. 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 has a 50 day moving average of $55.81 and a 200 day moving average of $49.75. The company has a market capitalization of $25.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.61, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.59.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.17. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 16.64%. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.48 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.05%.

Synchrony Financial 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.