Ascent Group LLC Buys New Stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Ascent Group LLC purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 31,659 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,365,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in SYF. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 995.4% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,599,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $241,448,000 after buying an additional 5,088,262 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $182,739,000. Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 23.6% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,826,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $146,112,000 after purchasing an additional 730,318 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,588,159 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $137,032,000 after purchasing an additional 165,369 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 33.5% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,685,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $115,266,000 after purchasing an additional 674,366 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of SYF stock traded down $0.27 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $50.51. 1,643,162 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,190,745. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $27.30 and a fifty-two week high of $52.67. The firm has a market cap of $19.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.63. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $46.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.90.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.20. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 16.06%. The company had revenue of $5.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.32 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 5.8 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 5th. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 14.35%.

Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. 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 research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Baird R W raised shares of Synchrony Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 31,562 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 approximately $5,446,890. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.