Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $40.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $59.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $77.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Compass Point downgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.10.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SYF opened at $55.18 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.46, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.67. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $39.67 and a 12 month high of $70.93. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $61.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $60.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 15.36%. Research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 11.71%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $461,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,085 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $200,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 9,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $604,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,099 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 7,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Synchrony Financial

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.