Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Increases Holdings in Synchrony Financial $SYF

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management increased its Synchrony Financial stake by 49.8% in the second quarter, adding 271,726 shares for a total of 817,606 shares valued at approximately $62.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 96.48% of the company.
• Synchrony reported quarterly earnings of $2.59 per share, exceeding analysts’ $2.14 estimate, on revenue of $3.72 billion. The company’s stock opened at $78.60, while analysts maintained a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $87.89.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend from $0.30 to $0.34 per share, implying an annualized dividend of $1.36 and a 1.7% yield. Synchrony also authorized a stock-repurchase program, although the reported authorization amount was $0.00.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 49.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 817,606 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 271,726 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.24% of Synchrony Financial worth $62,179,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. FWL Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

NYSE SYF opened at $78.60 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $74.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.67. Synchrony Financial has a 52 week low of $63.08 and a 52 week high of $88.77. The stock has a market cap of $25.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.45. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 23.09% and a net margin of 15.44%.The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.50 EPS. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.250-9.500 EPS. Analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 9.35 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is a boost from Synchrony Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 5th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.93%.

Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, April 21st that allows the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $71.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $87.89.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 51,258 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total transaction of $3,651,107.34. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 132,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,449,656.72. This trade represents a 27.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Synchrony Financial Company Profile

Synchrony Financial NYSE: SYF is a consumer financial services company that specializes in providing point-of-sale financing and private-label, co-branded and branded credit card programs. The company serves as a payments and lending partner to retailers, digital merchants and service providers, offering consumer financing solutions designed to drive customer engagement and sales. Synchrony also operates a direct bank that offers deposit products, including savings accounts and certificates of deposit, which support its funding and customer-facing product suite.

Its core product set includes private-label and co-branded credit cards, general-purpose credit cards, installment loan programs and promotional financing options that are integrated into merchants' checkout experiences.

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