Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Decreases Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Key Points

• The Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund reduced its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 16.2%, owning 72,201 shares after selling 14,000 shares during the first quarter.
• Analysts have generally positive views on Synchrony Financial, with thirteen analysts rating it as a "buy" and an average price target of $74.05.
• The company's quarterly earnings report indicated earnings per share of $2.50, surpassing expectations by $0.78, despite a 1.8% decline in revenue year-over-year.

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund trimmed its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 16.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 72,201 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 14,000 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund's holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $3,822,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SYF. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $175,294,000. Sachem Head Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $142,838,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 340.9% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,512,340 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $163,303,000 after buying an additional 1,942,573 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 755.7% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,179,984 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $115,408,000 after buying an additional 1,925,217 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Azora Capital LP raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 700.5% during the 4th quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 2,107,839 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $137,010,000 after buying an additional 1,844,509 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $48.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. JMP Securities increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $68.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $74.05.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider Curtis Howse sold 11,380 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total transaction of $739,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 108,062 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,024,030. This trade represents a 9.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 8,514 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $595,980.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 68,588 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,801,160. This represents a 11.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 61,133 shares of company stock valued at $3,817,635 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of SYF stock opened at $71.48 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The company has a market capitalization of $26.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.49. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $67.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $60.25. Synchrony Financial has a one year low of $40.54 and a one year high of $73.76.

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

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

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

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.

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