StockNews.com Downgrades Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) to Hold

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday.

Several other analysts have also commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. 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 research note on Thursday, April 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Wolfe Research raised 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 research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.55.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SYF opened at $44.89 on Tuesday. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $27.30 and a 12 month high of $46.72. The company has a market cap of $18.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.60. The business’s 50 day moving average is $43.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.19). Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 13.49%. The firm had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.35 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, April 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Curtis Howse sold 31,562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $1,420,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 121,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,446,890. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted 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 valued at $1,649,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd lifted its holdings in 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 period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in 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 period. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in 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 period. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,509 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $151,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

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.