Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Buys 29,067 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 25.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 144,522 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 29,067 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $7,651,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BTC Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 25.9% during the first quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 65,835 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,485,000 after purchasing an additional 13,526 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 70.2% during the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 10,657 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $564,000 after purchasing an additional 4,397 shares during the last quarter. Clarius Group LLC acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial during the first quarter worth $242,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter worth $57,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial during the first quarter worth $2,934,000. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Synchrony Financial stock traded down $0.39 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $69.31. 3,515,284 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,867,926. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $40.55 and a 52-week high of $70.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. The company has a market cap of $26.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.51, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.46. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $60.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $59.51.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.26. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 19.68% and a net margin of 13.00%. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.80 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This is a boost from Synchrony Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.46%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Curtis Howse sold 11,380 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total value of $739,700.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 108,062 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,024,030. This represents a 9.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total value of $2,441,184.73. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 146,628 shares in the company, valued at $8,807,943.96. This trade represents a 21.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on SYF. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $44.00 price objective (down from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $65.89.

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.