Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Stake Raised by Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC

Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 15.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 694 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $345,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SYF. Oak Thistle LLC boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 62.9% during the fourth quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 7,394 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 2,856 shares in the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $833,000. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 7,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $491,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 84,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,487,000 after acquiring an additional 3,907 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 20,208 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,314,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 99,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,498,831.59. This trade represents a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, 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 stock was sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $2,220,253.37. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 127,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,291,879.13. This trade represents a 21.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

SYF opened at $68.73 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. The company has a market cap of $26.76 billion, a PE ratio of 8.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $66.18 and a 200-day moving average of $55.83. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $35.29 and a 52-week high of $69.39.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.17. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 13.98%. The firm had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.48 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SYF has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $72.50 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Synchrony Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $60.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $59.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Synchrony Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $40.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.45.

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.