Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Upgraded to Buy by StockNews.com

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on SYF. Barclays lifted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $30.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Baird R W raised shares of Synchrony Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Robert W. Baird started coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given 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, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.43.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 0.7 %

SYF opened at $51.19 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $48.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.92. The company has a market cap of $20.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.34, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.61. Synchrony Financial has a one year low of $27.30 and a one year high of $52.67. 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 (NYSE:SYF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.20. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 16.06%. The business had revenue of $5.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.32 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 5.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. PARUS FINANCE UK Ltd raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 16.5% in the fourth quarter. PARUS FINANCE UK Ltd now owns 32,967 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,259,000 after buying an additional 4,663 shares during the last quarter. Oracle Alpha Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth $713,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 19.4% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 11,709 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $447,000 after purchasing an additional 1,905 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $246,000. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its position in Synchrony Financial by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 699,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,716,000 after buying an additional 41,455 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.