Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 95,026 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its stake in Synchrony Financial by 1.5%, selling 95,026 shares, and now owns 6,447,617 shares valued at approximately $341.3 million.
• Vanguard Group and other institutional investors increased their positions in Synchrony Financial, with Vanguard acquiring an additional 281,383 shares, bringing its total holdings to 48.4 million shares valued at over $2.5 billion.
• Synchrony Financial reported an EPS of $2.50 for the latest quarter, substantially exceeding analyst expectations of $1.72, despite revenue being down 1.8% year-over-year.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP cut its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 1.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,447,617 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 95,026 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 1.69% of Synchrony Financial worth $341,275,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 48,420,051 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,563,358,000 after acquiring an additional 281,383 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 6.5% in the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 5,868,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $310,653,000 after buying an additional 358,708 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 13.7% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,858,422 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $310,145,000 after purchasing an additional 706,212 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 26.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,183,717 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $336,942,000 after purchasing an additional 1,093,922 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,576,854 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $297,496,000 after purchasing an additional 382,194 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SYF opened at $71.48 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.59 billion, a PE ratio of 8.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.49. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $40.54 and a fifty-two week high of $73.76. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $67.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.78. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 21.34% and a net margin of 14.43%. The company had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.55 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 5th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Cfra Research upgraded Synchrony Financial to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. BTIG Research raised Synchrony Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, July 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage on Synchrony Financial in a report on Friday, August 1st. They set a "neutral" rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Synchrony Financial from $48.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $74.05.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 8,514 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $595,980.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 68,588 shares in the company, valued at $4,801,160. The trade was a 11.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 146,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 61,133 shares of company stock valued at $3,817,635. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Company 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.

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