Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Invests $39,000 in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $39,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SYF. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth $60,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 29,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,134,000 after purchasing an additional 4,877 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth $245,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth $182,739,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 21.2% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 58,603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,238,000 after purchasing an additional 10,242 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

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

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

NYSE SYF opened at $47.33 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.79, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.62. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $27.30 and a fifty-two week high of $52.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.23.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.20. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.06% and a net margin of 13.52%. The firm had revenue of $5.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.32 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on SYF. Baird R W raised Synchrony Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Bank of America raised Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Compass Point began coverage on Synchrony Financial in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $56.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.41.

Synchrony Financial 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.