Diligent Investors LLC Sells 799 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

by · The Markets Daily

Diligent Investors LLC cut its position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF – Free Report) by 4.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 799 shares during the quarter. Diligent Investors LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $905,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,963,573 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $650,678,000 after purchasing an additional 205,641 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 5,509,314 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $358,105,000 after acquiring an additional 380,870 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $347,903,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 26.7% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,183,717 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $336,942,000 after purchasing an additional 1,093,922 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,576,854 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $297,496,000 after purchasing an additional 382,194 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SYF has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Synchrony Financial from $64.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $44.00 price target (down previously from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given 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 a consensus price target of $63.95.

View Our Latest Stock Report on SYF

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total value of $2,441,184.73. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 146,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,807,943.96. This represents a 21.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

NYSE:SYF opened at $57.94 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $60.05. Synchrony Financial has a 1 year low of $40.55 and a 1 year high of $70.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.78, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.42.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.26. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 15.36%. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.80 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. This is an increase from Synchrony Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.46%.

Synchrony Financial Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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