Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd Sells 18,788 Shares of Synchrony Financial $SYF

Key Points

• Swiss Life Asset Management cut its Synchrony Financial stake by 22.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 18,788 shares and leaving it with 66,383 shares worth about $5.54 million.
• Synchrony Financial reported better-than-expected earnings of $2.27 per share for the latest quarter, though revenue of $3.70 billion missed estimates and fell 7.4% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share and analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $86.32.

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lessened its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 22.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 66,383 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 18,788 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd's holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $5,538,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,080,903 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,355,698,000 after acquiring an additional 191,920 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 5.4% in the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 14,335,213 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,018,517,000 after acquiring an additional 739,832 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position 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 valued at $354,194,000 after purchasing an additional 406,796 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted 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 last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SYF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Synchrony Financial from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. BTIG Research downgraded Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on 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. Compass Point upgraded Synchrony Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $96.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $86.32.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $69.78 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $70.62 and a 200-day moving average of $74.97. The company has a market capitalization of $23.47 billion, a PE ratio of 7.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.37. 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 52-week low of $55.67 and a 52-week high of $88.77.

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

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 5th will be 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.41%.

Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, April 21st that allows the company to buyback $0.00 in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Darrell Owens sold 3,865 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.71, for a total transaction of $261,699.15. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 17,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,180,320.72. The trade was a 18.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 7,882 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.71, for a total value of $533,690.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 94,873 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,423,850.83. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 323,372 shares of company stock valued at $22,080,634. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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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