AXQ Capital LP Makes New $1.40 Million Investment in Synchrony Financial $SYF

Key Points

• AXQ Capital LP opened a new position in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter, buying 16,736 shares worth about $1.4 million.
• Analysts remain cautious overall: the stock carries a Moderate Buy consensus rating with an average price target of $86.05, though several firms recently lowered targets or downgraded ratings.
• Synchrony reported Q1 EPS of $2.27, topping estimates, and recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share for a 1.7% annualized yield.

AXQ Capital LP acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 16,736 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,396,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 100.0% in the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 358 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. FWL Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 40.2% in the third quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 474 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on SYF shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $84.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. They set a "hold" rating and a $81.00 price target for the company. BTIG Research downgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Monday, April 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $86.05.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SYF stock opened at $70.90 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $23.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.33, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.37. The company's 50 day moving average is $72.02 and its 200 day moving average is $74.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $56.51 and a 52-week high of $88.77.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.81 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.80% and a return on equity of 23.41%. Synchrony Financial's revenue was down 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.89 earnings per share. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 9.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 5th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.41%.

Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, April 21st that allows the company to buyback $0.00 in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 51,258 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at $9,449,656.72. This trade represents a 27.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available 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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