Synchrony Financial $SYF Shares Sold by Geode Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management cut its Synchrony Financial stake by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, though it still held 9.9 million shares valued at about $830.5 million.
• Synchrony Financial beat quarterly earnings estimates with EPS of $2.27 versus $2.14 expected, even as revenue of $3.70 billion came in below estimates and fell 7.4% year over year.
• The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share and maintains a low payout ratio of 12.41%, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $86.05.

Geode Capital Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,908,152 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 213,331 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.75% of Synchrony Financial worth $830,519,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Investment Advisors MI raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 43.2% during the 3rd quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 68,841 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,890,000 after buying an additional 20,778 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Synchrony Financial by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 14,335,213 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,018,517,000 after purchasing an additional 739,832 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in Synchrony Financial by 38.2% during the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 720,016 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $51,157,000 after purchasing an additional 198,991 shares during the period. Tredje AP fonden increased its position in Synchrony Financial by 71.5% during the 3rd quarter. Tredje AP fonden now owns 54,811 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,894,000 after purchasing an additional 22,856 shares during the period. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,108,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on SYF shares. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $71.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $84.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. BTIG Research lowered shares of Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $86.05.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Alberto Casellas sold 14,399 shares of the 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 $974,956.29. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 50,331 shares in the company, valued at $3,407,912.01. This represents a 22.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Bart Schaller sold 12,980 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.71, for a total transaction of $878,875.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 34,035 shares in the company, valued at $2,304,509.85. This represents a 27.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 374,630 shares of company stock valued at $25,731,741. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

SYF stock opened at $71.44 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $71.92 and a 200-day moving average of $74.76. Synchrony Financial has a 12-month low of $56.51 and a 12-month high of $88.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. The company has a market cap of $24.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.39, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.37.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.13. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 23.41% and a net margin of 15.80%.The business had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.89 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect 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 was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 5th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 5th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.41%.

Synchrony Financial announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 21st that allows the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Company 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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