National Bank of Canada FI Has $8.14 Million Stock Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Key Points

• National Bank of Canada FI reduced its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 15.6% in the first quarter, resulting in ownership of 153,842 shares worth $8.14 million.
• Research firms have varied ratings and price targets for Synchrony Financial, with Wells Fargo raising its target to $80.00, while Evercore ISI set theirs at $56.00.
• Synchrony Financial announced a $0.30 quarterly dividend to be paid on August 15th, resulting in an annualized yield of 1.7%.

National Bank of Canada FI lowered its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 15.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 153,842 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 28,489 shares during the quarter. National Bank of Canada FI's holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $8,144,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. CVA Family Office LLC boosted its stake 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 valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 541 shares in the last quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 89.0% in the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 788 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 55.6% in the first quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 862 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYF traded up $0.29 during trading on Thursday, hitting $72.88. 2,589,738 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,801,135. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $40.54 and a 1-year high of $73.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $67.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.28. The company has a market capitalization of $27.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.49.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.78. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 21.34% and a net margin of 14.43%. The business had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.55 EPS. Synchrony Financial's revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.56%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Darrell Owens sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.95, for a total value of $40,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 21,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,452,227.40. This represents a 2.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 8,514 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $595,980.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 68,588 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,801,160. This trade represents a 11.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 61,133 shares of company stock valued at $3,817,635. 0.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on SYF shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Barclays dropped their price target on Synchrony Financial from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Truist Financial raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $68.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Friday, August 1st. They set a "neutral" rating and a $72.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $74.05.

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.