Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $53.29, but opened at $55.21. Synchrony Financial shares last traded at $54.46, with a volume of 1,584,086 shares.

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 16.06% and a net margin of 13.52%. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.48 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 5th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.76%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $53.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird started coverage on Synchrony Financial in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $56.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned 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 price target of $55.95.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Synchrony Financial news, 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 transaction of $47,281.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 49,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,510,987.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Synchrony Financial news, 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 transaction of $47,281.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 49,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,510,987.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.73, for a total transaction of $3,490,637.54. Following the transaction, the insider now directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SYF. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 65,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,502,000 after purchasing an additional 10,207 shares during the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 11,872 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $453,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 21.2% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 58,603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,238,000 after purchasing an additional 10,242 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 62.1% in the first quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 302,337 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,037,000 after purchasing an additional 115,790 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 16.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,911 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $169,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 0.3 %

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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $49.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $46.50. The company has a market capitalization of $22.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.61.

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.