Securian Asset Management Inc. Sells 3,801 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Securian Asset Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 12.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 26,207 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,801 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $1,001,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.2% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 36,580 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,118,000 after acquiring an additional 1,131 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 4.3% in the third quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 32,772 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,002,000 after acquiring an additional 1,353 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 15.1% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 214,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,557,000 after acquiring an additional 28,114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 0.4% during the third quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,893,254 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $57,877,000 after purchasing an additional 7,823 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on SYF. StockNews.com raised Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. 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. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.74.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $264,584.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 152,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,534,503.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Synchrony Financial 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 value of $264,584.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 152,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,534,503.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.26, for a total transaction 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 172,437 shares of company stock worth $7,242,432. Corporate insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of SYF stock opened at $44.80 on Wednesday. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $27.30 and a twelve month high of $46.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.58.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.19). The business 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 previous year, the business earned $1.35 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 5.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 3rd. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 14.35%.

Synchrony Financial announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 5.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.