Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Shares Sold by Natixis Advisors LLC

Natixis Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 177,550 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,027 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $11,541,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SYF. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $358,105,000 after purchasing an additional 380,870 shares during the period. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 37.9% in the 3rd quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 4,600,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $229,448,000 after buying an additional 1,265,000 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 4,447,275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $221,830,000 after buying an additional 157,948 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,083,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $200,756,000 after buying an additional 481,750 shares during the period. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,943,817 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $126,348,000 after acquiring an additional 279,517 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Synchrony Financial Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $54.46 on Thursday. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $39.67 and a fifty-two week high of $70.93. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $62.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market cap of $21.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.67.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SYF has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised their target price on Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $59.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Synchrony Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $60.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Compass Point cut shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $40.00 to $82.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.70.

Synchrony Financial Company 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.