Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Given New $73.00 Price Target at Royal Bank of Canada

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its target price boosted by Royal Bank of Canada from $70.00 to $73.00 in a research report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a sector perform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on SYF. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Synchrony Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $40.00 to $82.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Compass Point lowered Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.05.

Synchrony Financial Stock Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $68.76 on Wednesday. Synchrony Financial has a one year low of $37.91 and a one year high of $70.93. The stock has a market cap of $26.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The company has a 50 day moving average of $66.93 and a 200-day moving average of $57.14.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 13.98%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.13, for a total transaction of $1,209,221.42. Following the sale, the insider now owns 99,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,498,831.59. This represents a 18.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $8,291,879.13. This represents a 21.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SYF. Avestar Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $250,000. Consolidated Planning Corp grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp now owns 113,140 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,354,000 after acquiring an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $24,185,000. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 9,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $604,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TFB Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $237,000. 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.