Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Position Cut by Erste Asset Management GmbH

Erste Asset Management GmbH lowered its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 107,939 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,875 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $7,088,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bogart Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 111.5% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 480 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 92.7% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 151.4% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 807 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 46.5% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on SYF shares. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley raised Synchrony Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $40.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays raised Synchrony Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $59.00 to $79.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Compass Point downgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $72.50 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.30.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SYF stock opened at $51.92 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $20.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.67. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $39.67 and a 1-year high of $70.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $63.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.03.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 15.36%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.71%.

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.