Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) PT Raised to $41.00 at BMO Capital Markets

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its target price boosted by research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $40.00 to $41.00 in a research report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “market perform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective points to a potential downside of 8.22% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on SYF. StockNews.com cut Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. JMP Securities raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $35.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.72.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:SYF opened at $44.67 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $41.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $36.86. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $26.59 and a twelve month high of $45.46. The stock has a market cap of $18.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.41, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

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

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

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $264,584.78. Following the transaction, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total value of $264,584.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares in the company, valued at $6,534,503.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 148,158 shares of company stock valued at $6,106,106. Company insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 995.4% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,599,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $241,448,000 after purchasing an additional 5,088,262 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth $182,739,000. Boston Partners grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 158.9% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,095,762 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $94,609,000 after purchasing an additional 1,900,216 shares during the period. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 362.0% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,981,883 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $75,688,000 after purchasing an additional 1,552,946 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 16.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,468,996 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $167,187,000 after purchasing an additional 755,856 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.