Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 1.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 894,847 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 11,914 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of Synchrony Financial worth $47,373,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SYF. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. CVA Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 355.9% in the 1st quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 693 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 46.5% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 810 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 55.6% during the first quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 862 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYF traded up $1.28 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $69.45. The company had a trading volume of 3,699,672 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,876,115. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $40.55 and a twelve month high of $70.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $26.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.46. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $58.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.44.

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

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SYF has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Synchrony Financial from $64.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $44.00 price target (down previously from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Cfra Research upgraded Synchrony Financial to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $65.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 11,380 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total transaction of $739,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 108,062 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,024,030. This trade represents a 9.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total value of $2,441,184.73. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 146,628 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,807,943.96. This trade represents a 21.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.