Swiss National Bank Cuts Stock Holdings in Synchrony Financial $SYF

Key Points

• Swiss National Bank cut its position in Synchrony Financial by 6.7% in Q3, selling 79,400 shares and ending the period with 1,097,343 shares (about 0.30% of the company) worth ~$77.97 million.
• Analysts remain broadly positive with a MarketBeat consensus of Moderate Buy and a $87.11 price target, while recent individual targets range roughly from $84 to $100 and include several upgrades.
• Insiders have been net sellers recently—379,928 shares sold in the last 90 days (~$26.17 million), including a 217,554-share sale by Brian D. Doubles—leaving insiders with about 0.32% ownership.

Swiss National Bank decreased its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,097,343 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 79,400 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.30% of Synchrony Financial worth $77,966,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SYF. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,302 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $439,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 36.2% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 35,582 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,884,000 after buying an additional 9,460 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 6,406 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $339,000 after buying an additional 459 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 337.0% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 590 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 455 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 56.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,062 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $405,000 after buying an additional 2,178 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Synchrony Financial from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $91.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $92.00 to $84.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $96.00 target price on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $87.11.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Alberto Casellas sold 14,399 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.71, for a total value of $974,956.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 50,331 shares in the company, valued at $3,407,912.01. This trade represents a 22.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 217,554 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.68, for a total value of $14,941,608.72. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 829,222 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,950,966.96. The trade was a 20.78% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 379,928 shares of company stock valued at $26,170,764. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of SYF opened at $65.15 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $22.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.42. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $40.54 and a fifty-two week high of $88.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The business has a 50-day moving average of $74.96 and a 200 day moving average of $75.75.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $2.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.16. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.72% and a return on equity of 23.07%. The firm had revenue of $3.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.91 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.92%.

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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