StockNews.com Lowers Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) to Hold

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Tuesday.

SYF has been the subject of several other research reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $41.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.41.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Synchrony Financial stock traded down $0.87 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $49.01. 2,785,661 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,015,285. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $27.30 and a 1-year high of $52.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The business has a fifty day moving average of $48.12 and a 200 day moving average of $45.69. The company has a market capitalization of $19.37 billion, a PE ratio of 7.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.62.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $5.58 billion for 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 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SYF. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 72.0% during the second quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 111,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,276,000 after purchasing an additional 46,800 shares during the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $86,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the second quarter valued at $4,877,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 21.4% during the second quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 13,321 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $629,000 after buying an additional 2,349 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invst LLC raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 4.7% during the second quarter. Invst LLC now owns 20,432 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $983,000 after acquiring an additional 916 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.