Synchrony Financial’s (SYF) “Buy” Rating Reaffirmed at BTIG Research

BTIG Research reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) in a research note published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. BTIG Research currently has a $100.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock.

SYF has been the topic of a number of other research reports. HSBC upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $73.00 to $81.00 in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $68.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. UBS Group raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.25.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of SYF stock opened at $70.23 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $40.54 and a 52-week high of $77.41. The company has a market capitalization of $26.13 billion, a PE ratio of 7.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.50. The business’s fifty day moving average is $73.39 and its 200 day moving average is $64.56.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.64. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 22.96% and a net margin of 15.84%.The company had revenue of $3.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.79 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.94 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 14.56%.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, October 15th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 3.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Darrell Owens sold 600 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.95, for a total value of $40,770.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 21,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,452,227.40. The trade was a 2.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 8,514 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $595,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 68,588 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,801,160. This represents a 11.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Investors Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Spolka Akcyjna bought a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the second quarter worth about $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 5,787.5% in the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 471 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the second quarter worth about $39,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the first quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 337.0% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 590 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by 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.