Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Shares Purchased by National Bank of Canada FI

National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 22.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 110,993 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 20,552 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $5,340,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Swedbank AB raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 23.8% during the second quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 99,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,694,000 after purchasing an additional 19,098 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the first quarter valued at about $2,192,000. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 33.5% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,685,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $115,266,000 after buying an additional 674,366 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 98.6% in the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 23,859 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,029,000 after acquiring an additional 11,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 52.6% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 490,147 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,134,000 after acquiring an additional 168,920 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. JMP Securities lifted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Bank of America raised Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $41.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.41.

Synchrony Financial Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of Synchrony Financial stock opened at $48.17 on Tuesday. Synchrony Financial has a 12-month low of $27.30 and a 12-month high of $52.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.91, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $48.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.90.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $5.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 16.06%. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.32 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 5th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is presently 14.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.73, for a total value of $3,490,637.54. Following the sale, the insider now owns 76,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,563,209.23. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Bart Schaller sold 930 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.84, for a total transaction of $47,281.20. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 49,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,510,987.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.73, for a total value of $3,490,637.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 76,251 shares in the company, valued at $3,563,209.23. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.