Tidal Investments LLC Buys 26,281 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 39.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 92,642 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 26,281 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC's holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $6,022,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $407,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 19.0% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,334 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $152,000 after buying an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 16.5% in the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,689 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $370,000 after buying an additional 807 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 76.4% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 111,680 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,259,000 after buying an additional 48,382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 151.4% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 807 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 486 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $64.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $44.00 price target (down from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $65.00 to $57.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Compass Point downgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $63.95.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In other news, 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 transaction of $2,441,184.73. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 146,628 shares in the company, valued at $8,807,943.96. This trade represents a 21.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

SYF stock traded down $0.71 on Friday, hitting $56.75. The company had a trading volume of 2,218,846 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,925,528. Synchrony Financial has a 12-month low of $40.55 and a 12-month high of $70.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $52.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.44. The stock has a market cap of $21.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.42.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.26. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The company had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.80 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. This is a boost from Synchrony Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.46%.

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.