Tredje AP fonden Sells 1,016 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Tredje AP fonden lessened its position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 1.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 63,909 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,016 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $3,016,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $182,739,000. Boston Partners lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 66.6% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 6,374,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $274,892,000 after buying an additional 2,548,180 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 362.0% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,981,883 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $75,688,000 after buying an additional 1,552,946 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 402.8% during the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,520,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $71,739,000 after buying an additional 1,217,872 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 33.5% in the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,685,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,266,000 after acquiring an additional 674,366 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:SYF opened at $51.04 on Friday. Synchrony Financial has a 1 year low of $27.30 and a 1 year high of $52.67. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.24. The company has a market capitalization of $20.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.23.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $5.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 16.06%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.32 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 5th. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.35%.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In related news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the firm’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 sale, the insider now directly owns 76,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,563,209.23. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at 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 shares were sold at an average price of $50.84, for a total value of $47,281.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 49,390 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,510,987.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 76,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,563,209.23. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on SYF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Baird R W upgraded Synchrony Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Compass Point initiated coverage on Synchrony Financial in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.41.

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.