Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Shares Sold by AustralianSuper Pty Ltd

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lowered its position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 18.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,405,833 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 555,244 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd owned approximately 0.62% of Synchrony Financial worth $156,379,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bogart Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 92.7% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 111.5% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 480 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 301.3% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the third quarter worth about $50,000. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on SYF. UBS Group upped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $40.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $59.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.30.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SYF opened at $64.06 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $67.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.35. The stock has a market cap of $24.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.50, a P/E/G 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 has a fifty-two week low of $38.78 and a fifty-two week high of $70.93.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. Equities analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 7.45 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 11.71%.

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.