Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Raised to Strong-Buy at Baird R W

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Baird R W to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday, Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on SYF. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Wolfe Research upgraded Synchrony Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $36.00 to $50.00 in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.10.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 6.7 %

SYF opened at $47.19 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $18.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.60. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $27.30 and a 12 month high of $47.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $44.11 and a 200 day moving average of $41.23.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $5.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 13.49%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.35 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 24th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Synchrony Financial

In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 31,562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $1,420,290.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 121,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,446,890. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Quent Capital LLC raised its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 15.4% in the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,604 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 38,247 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,649,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 35,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,518,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 90,343 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,896,000 after buying an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 34,804 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,329,000 after buying an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Synchrony Financial

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.