Victory Capital Management Inc. Lowers Stake in Synovus Financial Corp. (NYSE:SNV)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its position in shares of Synovus Financial Corp. (NYSE:SNV) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 225,038 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 13,467 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.16% of Synovus Financial worth $11,529,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its position in Synovus Financial by 7.6% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 146,734 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,525,000 after acquiring an additional 10,346 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Synovus Financial by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 276,863 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $14,261,000 after acquiring an additional 10,109 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Synovus Financial during the third quarter valued at about $1,264,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its position in Synovus Financial by 25.1% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 49,099 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,183,000 after acquiring an additional 9,852 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Synovus Financial by 3.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,992,614 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $222,022,000 after acquiring an additional 147,599 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.85% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SNV. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Synovus Financial from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Synovus Financial from $67.00 to $59.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Synovus Financial in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $64.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $64.00 target price on shares of Synovus Financial in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on Synovus Financial in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $76.00 target price for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.67.

Synovus Financial Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE SNV opened at $44.17 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $52.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.92. Synovus Financial Corp. has a 52-week low of $33.44 and a 52-week high of $59.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.48, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Synovus Financial (NYSE:SNV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 15th. The bank reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.09. Synovus Financial had a return on equity of 14.70% and a net margin of 14.05%. The firm had revenue of $580.58 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $566.83 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.80 earnings per share. Synovus Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Synovus Financial Corp. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synovus Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.53%. This is a boost from Synovus Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Synovus Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.15%.

Synovus Financial Company Profile

Synovus Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Synovus Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking products and services. It operates through four segments: Community Banking, Wholesale Banking, Consumer Banking, and Financial Management Services. The company's commercial banking services include treasury and asset management, capital market, and institutional trust services, as well as commercial, financial, and real estate lending services.