Wellington Management Group LLP Raises Stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 18.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 65,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 10,207 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $2,502,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 45.4% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 108,458 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,142,000 after acquiring an additional 33,867 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 699,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,716,000 after purchasing an additional 41,455 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 58.1% during the 4th quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 280,952 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,646,000 after purchasing an additional 103,222 shares in the last quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter worth $2,592,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,384,091 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $91,048,000 after buying an additional 116,458 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 31,562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $47.19 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $27.30 and a twelve month high of $47.24. The company’s 50 day moving average is $44.11 and its 200 day moving average is $41.30. The company has a market cap of $18.95 billion, a PE ratio of 6.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.60.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.35 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 24th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.12%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 14.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SYF has been the subject of a number of research reports. Baird R W raised shares of Synchrony Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $62.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.10.

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.