Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC Purchases 430,686 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC grew its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 218.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 627,703 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 430,686 shares during the period. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.16% of Synchrony Financial worth $40,801,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in SYF. Bogart Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 111.5% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 480 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the period. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 151.4% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 807 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on SYF shares. Compass Point downgraded Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $63.95.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

SYF stock traded down $0.71 during trading on Monday, hitting $56.75. The company had a trading volume of 2,218,846 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,930,887. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $52.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $60.36. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $40.55 and a fifty-two week high of $70.93. The company has a market cap of $21.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 15.36%. The company had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.80 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. This is a positive change from Synchrony Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. Synchrony Financial's payout ratio is 16.46%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the firm'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 sale, the insider now directly owns 146,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,807,943.96. This trade represents a 21.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.