Bessemer Group Inc. Sells 29,300 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Bessemer Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 73.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,450 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 29,300 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $553,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SYF. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $347,903,000. Sachem Head Capital Management LP bought a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $142,838,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 340.9% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,512,340 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $163,303,000 after buying an additional 1,942,573 shares in the last quarter. Azora Capital LP raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 700.5% during the fourth quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 2,107,839 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $137,010,000 after buying an additional 1,844,509 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 169.0% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 2,356,862 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $153,196,000 after buying an additional 1,480,702 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $44.00 target price (down from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Monday, April 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $65.78.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of SYF stock traded up $0.87 on Thursday, reaching $70.34. 640,868 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,863,448. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $59.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.77 billion, a PE ratio of 9.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. Synchrony Financial has a 52 week low of $40.55 and a 52 week high of $70.93.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 13.00% and a return on equity of 19.68%. As a group, analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This is an increase from Synchrony Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 transaction, the insider directly owned 108,062 shares in the company, valued at $7,024,030. This trade represents a 9.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction 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 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

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.