Janus Henderson Group PLC Sells 10,008 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Janus Henderson Group PLC lowered its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 14.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 57,020 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,008 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC's holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $3,707,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,094 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $461,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,085 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $200,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 9,290 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $604,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 19.7% during the fourth quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,099 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. CX Institutional now owns 5,755 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $374,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of SYF opened at $60.03 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.42. Synchrony Financial has a 12-month low of $40.55 and a 12-month high of $70.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $52.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $60.45.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.80 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. Equities research analysts expect 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 dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a positive change 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 2.00%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial's payout ratio is currently 16.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Cfra Research raised shares of Synchrony Financial to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $63.95.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total transaction of $2,441,184.73. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 146,628 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,807,943.96. The trade was a 21.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 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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