Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Synchrony Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird started coverage on Synchrony Financial in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.10.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Synchrony Financial stock opened at $47.36 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $44.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The company has a market cap of $19.02 billion, a PE ratio of 6.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.63. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $27.30 and a twelve month high of $48.59.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 firm posted $1.35 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 5.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 31,562 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $1,420,290.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 121,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,446,890. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of SYF. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 995.4% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,599,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $241,448,000 after buying an additional 5,088,262 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $182,739,000. Boston Partners increased its position in Synchrony Financial by 66.6% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 6,374,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $274,892,000 after purchasing an additional 2,548,180 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 362.0% during 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, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 33.0% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 2,907,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $88,871,000 after purchasing an additional 720,587 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

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.