Intech Investment Management LLC Purchases 41,782 Shares of Synchrony Financial $SYF

Key Points

• Intech Investment Management boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 92.1% in the fourth quarter, buying 41,782 more shares and bringing its total holding to 87,126 shares worth about $7.27 million.
• Analyst sentiment on SYF remains positive overall, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.05. Several firms recently lifted targets, including Truist, Robert W. Baird, and Barclays.
• Synchrony reported Q1 earnings of $2.27 per share, beating estimates, and also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share. The company’s board additionally approved a share repurchase authorization, signaling confidence in the stock.

Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 92.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 87,126 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 41,782 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC's holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $7,269,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 100.0% in the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 358 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. FWL Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 337.0% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 590 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 40.2% in the third quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 474 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on SYF shares. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $71.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $86.05.

Insider Activity at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 217,554 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.68, for a total transaction of $14,941,608.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 829,222 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,950,966.96. This represents a 20.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 47,112 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.16, for a total transaction of $3,164,041.92. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 64,221 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,313,082.36. This represents a 42.32% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 374,630 shares of company stock valued at $25,731,741 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 0.0%

SYF opened at $71.44 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $71.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The firm has a market cap of $24.03 billion, a PE ratio of 7.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.37. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $56.51 and a twelve month high of $88.77.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.89 earnings per share. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 9.29 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

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

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 21st that allows the company to repurchase $0.00 in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.