LSV Asset Management Acquires 17,300 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

LSV Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,910,554 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,300 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $72,964,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Shufro Rose & Co. LLC lifted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Shufro Rose & Co. LLC now owns 42,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,615,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,711 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 3.9% in the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 9,886 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $302,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor Partners II LLC raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 15,864 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $485,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Synchrony Financial stock traded up $0.60 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $45.60. 3,485,300 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,323,139. Synchrony Financial has a 1 year low of $26.59 and a 1 year high of $45.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $42.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.39.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.19). Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.49% and a return on equity of 16.01%. The firm had revenue of $5.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.35 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 5.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 14.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.26, for a total value of $5,557,556.96. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 660,353 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,246,164.78. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $264,584.78. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,534,503.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.26, for a total value of $5,557,556.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 660,353 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,246,164.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SYF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Stephens boosted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.74.

Synchrony Financial 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.