LSV Asset Management Trims Stock Holdings in Synchrony Financial $SYF

Key Points

• LSV Asset Management cut its Synchrony Financial stake by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, though it still held 2.26 million shares worth about $188.7 million at quarter-end.
• Several other institutions were buyers, and 96.48% of SYF shares are owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors, underscoring heavy institutional ownership of the stock.
• Synchrony reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $2.27 per share, but revenue fell 7.4% year over year; the company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share and reiterated a share buyback plan.

LSV Asset Management reduced its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,261,729 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 73,125 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned approximately 0.63% of Synchrony Financial worth $188,696,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SYF. State Street Corp increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 1.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,080,903 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,355,698,000 after purchasing an additional 191,920 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 5.4% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 14,335,213 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,018,517,000 after purchasing an additional 739,832 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 8.3% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,307,077 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $354,194,000 after purchasing an additional 406,796 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,134,903 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $431,999,000 after purchasing an additional 592,567 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 48.3% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 4,349,059 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $309,001,000 after purchasing an additional 1,416,909 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. BTIG Research lowered shares of Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $71.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Friday. They set a "hold" rating and a $81.00 price target on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $91.00 to $85.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $86.05.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 217,554 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider directly owned 829,222 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,950,966.96. This represents a 20.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Alberto Casellas sold 14,399 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.71, for a total transaction of $974,956.29. Following the sale, the insider owned 50,331 shares in the company, valued at $3,407,912.01. The trade was a 22.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 374,630 shares of company stock valued at $25,731,741. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 0.1%

SYF stock opened at $71.91 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $71.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $74.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $55.67 and a fifty-two week high of $88.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.44, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.37.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.13. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.80% and a return on equity of 23.41%. The firm had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.89 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 9.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 5th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.41%.

Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, April 21st that allows the company to repurchase $0.00 in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is 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.

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