Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Boosts Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 934.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 38,218 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 34,523 shares during the quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $2,023,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in SYF. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. CVA Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 355.9% in the first quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 693 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 541 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 46.5% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 810 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the period. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 55.6% in the 1st quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 862 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 11,380 shares of Synchrony Financial 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 now owns 108,062 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,024,030. The trade was a 9.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total transaction of $2,441,184.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:SYF traded up $0.94 on Thursday, hitting $65.87. The stock had a trading volume of 2,210,776 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,900,075. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $57.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $59.54. The stock has a market cap of $25.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.44. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $40.55 and a 52-week high of $70.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

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

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were given a $0.30 dividend. This is a boost from Synchrony Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.82%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 16.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SYF. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Cfra Research raised Synchrony Financial to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $44.00 target price (down from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $64.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $64.78.

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.