Czech National Bank Purchases 3,907 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Czech National Bank lifted its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,907 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $5,487,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP lifted its position in Synchrony Financial by 37.9% in the 3rd quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 4,600,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $229,448,000 after buying an additional 1,265,000 shares during the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 389.8% during the third quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 1,138,672 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $56,797,000 after acquiring an additional 906,172 shares in the last quarter. Soros Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $41,088,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 14.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,726,704 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $264,917,000 after acquiring an additional 727,649 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 589.3% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 644,203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,133,000 after purchasing an additional 550,750 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Synchrony Financial stock opened at $68.12 on Thursday. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $35.29 and a 12 month high of $69.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $66.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.66.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.76 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 13.98%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.48 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is presently 13.05%.

Insider Activity

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.13, for a total value of $1,209,221.42. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 99,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,498,831.59. This trade represents a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $2,220,253.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 127,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,291,879.13. This represents a 21.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on SYF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $59.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Compass Point lifted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.45.

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.