Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Insider Sells $2,220,253.37 in Stock

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total transaction of $2,220,253.37. Following the sale, the insider now owns 127,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,291,879.13. The trade was a 21.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of Synchrony Financial stock traded down $0.40 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $63.65. 4,105,814 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,981,904. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $54.34 and a 200-day moving average of $49.24. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $29.15 and a 12 month high of $67.76. The company has a market cap of $24.78 billion, a PE ratio of 8.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 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.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.17. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 16.64%. The firm had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.76 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.48 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 6.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 13.05%.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 92.7% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 83.6% during the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 716 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on SYF shares. Bank of America raised shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. BTIG Research cut Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 target price on Synchrony Financial in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.43.

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.