Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Stock Position Lifted by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 70.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,657 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,397 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $564,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Czech National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 89,289 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,727,000 after purchasing an additional 4,871 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 7.1% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 930,362 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $49,253,000 after buying an additional 61,436 shares during the period. BTC Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 25.9% in the 1st quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 65,835 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,485,000 after acquiring an additional 13,526 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 55.6% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Global Financial Private Client LLC boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 1,107.4% during the 1st quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 978 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 897 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total value of $2,441,184.73. Following the sale, the insider now owns 146,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,807,943.96. This trade represents 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. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on SYF. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Synchrony Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated 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. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $64.17.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SYF traded down $0.03 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $60.80. The stock had a trading volume of 2,772,513 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,345,293. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market cap of $23.14 billion, a PE ratio of 7.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.44. Synchrony Financial has a one year low of $40.54 and a one year high of $70.93. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $53.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $59.87.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. This is a positive change from Synchrony Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio is 16.46%.

Synchrony Financial 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.