AlphaCentric Advisors LLC Sells 192 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

AlphaCentric Advisors LLC lessened its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,243 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 192 shares during the quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $311,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 23.8% during the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 99,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,694,000 after purchasing an additional 19,098 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the first quarter worth $2,192,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Synchrony Financial by 98.6% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 23,859 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,029,000 after acquiring an additional 11,846 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 52.6% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 490,147 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,134,000 after purchasing an additional 168,920 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 998,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,011,000 after purchasing an additional 30,366 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of SYF stock opened at $55.06 on Tuesday. Synchrony Financial has a 52 week low of $28.84 and a 52 week high of $57.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.44 billion, a PE ratio of 7.19, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $51.32 and its 200-day moving average is $47.80.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.76 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 16.64%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.48 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 6.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 4th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 13.05%.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In related news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.73, for a total value of $3,490,637.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 76,251 shares in the company, valued at $3,563,209.23. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on SYF shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 price target on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.60.

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.