Candriam S.C.A. Buys 35,967 Shares of Synchrony Financial $SYF

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 7.1% in the first quarter, adding 35,967 shares to bring its total holding to 542,756 shares worth about $36.9 million.
• Synchrony’s stock was up 1.3% to $72.49, while the company reported strong quarterly earnings of $2.27 per share, topping analyst estimates even though revenue came in below expectations.
• Analysts remain cautiously positive on SYF, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.21; the company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share.

Candriam S.C.A. raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 7.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 542,756 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 35,967 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A. owned approximately 0.16% of Synchrony Financial worth $36,918,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,080,903 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,355,698,000 after purchasing an additional 191,920 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 5.4% in the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 14,335,213 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,018,517,000 after buying an additional 739,832 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,230,111 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $519,778,000 after acquiring an additional 442,226 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,490,921 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $458,108,000 after acquiring an additional 517,781 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,307,077 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $354,194,000 after acquiring an additional 406,796 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 51,258 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total value of $3,651,107.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 132,664 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,449,656.72. The trade was a 27.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Up 1.3%

SYF stock traded up $0.92 on Friday, reaching $72.49. 2,903,822 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,499,538. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $73.86. Synchrony Financial has a one year low of $63.08 and a one year high of $88.77. The company has a market cap of $24.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.32.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.81 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 23.41% and a net margin of 15.80%.The company's revenue was down 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 9.33 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SYF shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Synchrony Financial from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $77.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $86.21.

Synchrony Financial 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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