Southpoint Capital Advisors LP Boosts Stock Position in Synchrony Financial $SYF

Key Points

• Southpoint Capital Advisors LP increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 25% in the first quarter, making it the firm's largest holding, with 5 million shares now valued at approximately $264.7 million.
• The company reported $2.50 earnings per share, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.72, but its revenue of $3.65 billion fell short of estimates and decreased by 1.8% year-over-year.
• Synchrony Financial recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, yielding 1.6% annually, with a payout ratio of 14.56% based on current earnings.

Southpoint Capital Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 25.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,000,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,000,000 shares during the period. Synchrony Financial makes up 6.2% of Southpoint Capital Advisors LP's portfolio, making the stock its biggest position. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP owned approximately 1.31% of Synchrony Financial worth $264,700,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SYF. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. MAI Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 36.3% during the 1st quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 627 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. CVA Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 355.9% during the 1st quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 693 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 89.0% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 788 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

NYSE SYF traded down $1.21 on Friday, reaching $75.65. The stock had a trading volume of 2,149,018 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,704,496. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $71.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.13. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $40.54 and a 1-year high of $77.41. The company has a market cap of $28.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.49.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.78. The firm had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.71 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 21.34% and a net margin of 14.43%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.55 EPS. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider Curtis Howse sold 11,380 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total value of $739,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 108,062 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,024,030. This represents a 9.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 8,514 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $595,980.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 68,588 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,801,160. The trade was a 11.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 20,494 shares of company stock worth $1,376,450. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on SYF shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $52.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $68.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Barclays decreased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, BTIG Research raised Synchrony Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, July 14th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $74.05.

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.