Jefferies Financial Group Increases Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Price Target to $65.00

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its target price hoisted by Jefferies Financial Group from $60.00 to $65.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on Synchrony Financial in a report on Friday, June 28th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com raised Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.25.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $56.42 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.23. Synchrony Financial has a 52 week low of $27.30 and a 52 week high of $57.26. The firm has a market cap of $22.66 billion, a PE ratio of 8.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.61. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $49.43 and its 200-day moving average is $46.68.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.17. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.06% and a net margin of 13.52%. 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 company posted $1.48 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 5.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 14.35%.

Insider Activity at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.73, for a total transaction of $3,490,637.54. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,563,209.23. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Bart Schaller sold 930 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.84, for a total value of $47,281.20. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 49,390 shares in the company, valued at $2,510,987.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.73, for a total value of $3,490,637.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,563,209.23. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quent Capital LLC increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 15.4% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,604 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.3% in the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 7,508 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $387,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.5% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 52,242 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,465,000 after buying an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 0.7% during the first quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 35,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,518,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the period. Finally, Certuity LLC grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 0.8% during the second quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 31,326 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,478,000 after buying an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

About Synchrony Financial

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.