Choreo LLC Lowers Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Choreo LLC decreased its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 46.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,279 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $690,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Graypoint LLC grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,668 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 7,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $491,000 after buying an additional 192 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 15,499 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $773,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 20,208 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,314,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. CX Institutional now owns 5,755 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $374,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SYF. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Synchrony Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $40.00 to $82.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 target price on Synchrony Financial in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Synchrony Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $59.00 to $79.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given 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 an average price target of $69.30.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SYF opened at $65.45 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $67.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.11. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $38.25 and a 52-week high of $70.93. The firm has a market cap 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 quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.71%.

Insider Activity at Synchrony Financial

In related news, 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 transaction of $2,220,253.37. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 127,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,291,879.13. This represents a 21.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.