Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Has $21.74 Million Position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky cut its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 16.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 410,579 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 81,772 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky owned approximately 0.11% of Synchrony Financial worth $21,735,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 44,519 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,894,000 after purchasing an additional 3,083 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 58.0% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 17,927 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,165,000 after buying an additional 6,584 shares during the period. HUB Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $288,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 44.0% during the fourth quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 36,901 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,399,000 after buying an additional 11,273 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 14.4% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,029,437 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $66,913,000 after acquiring an additional 129,532 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider Curtis Howse sold 11,380 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total transaction of $739,700.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 108,062 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,024,030. The trade was a 9.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total value of $2,441,184.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 146,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,807,943.96. This represents a 21.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

SYF stock traded up $0.02 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $72.10. 1,207,941 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,144,292. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $40.54 and a twelve month high of $72.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $63.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.46.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.50 earnings per share (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 was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.55 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on SYF shares. BTIG Research upgraded Synchrony Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, July 14th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Synchrony Financial from $64.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial increased their price target on Synchrony Financial from $68.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $74.17.

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.