Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. Decreases Stock Position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. reduced its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 54.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 192,152 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 226,516 shares during the quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C.'s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $12,490,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,602,422 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $234,157,000 after buying an additional 471,958 shares in the last quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $397,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,021,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $304,000. Finally, Aristeia Capital L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $323,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 3.7 %

NYSE:SYF opened at $54.22 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $20.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.35, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a 1 year low of $40.55 and a 1 year high of $70.93. The business has a fifty day moving average of $51.81 and a 200-day moving average of $60.25.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.26. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 15.36%. The company had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.80 billion. Equities analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 5th. This is a positive change from Synchrony Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SYF. Compass Point lowered shares of Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $70.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. StockNews.com lowered Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $44.00 price objective (down previously from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $63.95.

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.

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