Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Shares Sold by Empirical Finance LLC

Empirical Finance LLC 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 15,243 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 256 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $991,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 123.3% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 354,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $23,069,000 after purchasing an additional 195,982 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $461,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $240,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lifted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 314.5% in the 4th quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 136,012 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,841,000 after acquiring an additional 103,200 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 47,021 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,056,000 after acquiring an additional 7,053 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total transaction of $2,220,253.37. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 127,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,291,879.13. This trade represents a 21.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SYF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $59.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. 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. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.30.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 3.0 %

NYSE:SYF opened at $65.45 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $67.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $58.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.66, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $38.25 and a 1-year high of $70.93.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 11.71%.

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.