Strs Ohio Makes New Investment in Synchrony Financial $SYF

Key Points

• Strs Ohio acquired 39,618 shares of Synchrony Financial valued at approximately $2.1 million during the 1st quarter, indicating growing institutional interest in the company.
• Synchrony Financial's stock is currently trading at $76.28, with a market capitalization of $28.38 billion, and a recent earnings report showed an EPS of $2.50, exceeding analyst expectations.
• The firm recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 1.6%, reflecting its commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 39,618 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,097,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Synchrony Financial by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 48,420,051 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,563,358,000 after buying an additional 281,383 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 5,868,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $310,653,000 after acquiring an additional 358,708 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 13.7% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,858,422 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $310,145,000 after acquiring an additional 706,212 shares in the last quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 25.0% in the 1st quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 5,000,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $264,700,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 36.0% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,900,281 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $259,421,000 after acquiring an additional 1,297,859 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 8,514 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $595,980.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 68,588 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,801,160. This trade represents a 11.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 11,380 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total transaction of $739,700.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 108,062 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,024,030. The trade was a 9.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 20,494 shares of company stock worth $1,376,450. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYF traded up $0.03 during trading on Friday, hitting $76.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,186,388 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,819,531. The company has a 50-day moving average of $72.74 and a 200-day moving average of $62.18. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $40.54 and a 12 month high of $77.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The firm has a market cap of $28.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.49.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.78. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 21.34%. The firm had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.55 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SYF shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $52.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $68.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Synchrony Financial to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $73.79.

Synchrony Financial 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.