Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. Has $720,000 Stock Position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 4.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $720,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 5,509,314 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $358,105,000 after acquiring an additional 380,870 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $347,903,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 4,447,275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $221,830,000 after purchasing an additional 157,948 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,083,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $200,756,000 after buying an additional 481,750 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,943,817 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $126,348,000 after buying an additional 279,517 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Synchrony Financial stock opened at $52.39 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $60.62. Synchrony Financial has a one year low of $39.67 and a one year high of $70.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.13, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.67.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 EPS 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SYF has been the topic of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $77.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $59.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Compass Point downgraded 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, January 28th. Seven research 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.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.10.

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.