Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Price Target Raised to $65.00

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its price objective upped by Jefferies Financial Group from $60.00 to $65.00 in a report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $59.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on Synchrony Financial in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.25.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $56.42 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.66 billion, a PE ratio of 8.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.61. 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 has a 52-week low of $27.30 and a 52-week high of $57.26. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $49.43 and a 200 day moving average of $46.68.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.76 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.06% and a net margin of 13.52%. The company’s revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.48 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 5.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 14.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 approximately $3,563,209.23. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 76,251 shares in the company, valued at $3,563,209.23. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Bart Schaller sold 930 shares of the 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 49,390 shares in the company, valued at $2,510,987.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vest Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 558,597 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,863,000 after buying an additional 38,836 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates increased its position in Synchrony Financial by 31.3% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 386,875 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,297,000 after acquiring an additional 92,196 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 84.4% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,695 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,000 after acquiring an additional 1,691 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial in the third quarter worth about $273,000. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 1.0% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 39,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,994,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. 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.