Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Given New $72.50 Price Target at The Goldman Sachs Group

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its price objective raised by The Goldman Sachs Group from $64.00 to $72.50 in a research report report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on SYF. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Compass Point upped their price target on Synchrony Financial from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Synchrony Financial from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.43.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of Synchrony Financial stock opened at $63.65 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $54.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $49.36. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $29.15 and a 12 month high of $67.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.31, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.17. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 13.98%. The business had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.48 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 6.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.57%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.05%.

Insider Activity

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $2,220,253.37. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 127,587 shares in the company, valued at $8,291,879.13. This trade represents a 21.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.13, for a total value of $1,209,221.42. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 99,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,498,831.59. This represents a 18.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 66.6% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 6,374,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $274,892,000 after acquiring an additional 2,548,180 shares during the period. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 37.9% during 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 acquiring an additional 1,265,000 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 402.8% during the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,520,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $71,739,000 after acquiring an additional 1,217,872 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 389.8% during the 3rd quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 1,138,672 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $56,797,000 after acquiring an additional 906,172 shares during the period. Finally, Soros Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $41,088,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

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.