Russell Investments Group Ltd. Lowers Stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. trimmed its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 5.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,106,174 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 62,912 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.27% of Synchrony Financial worth $42,251,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 16.0% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,468,996 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $167,187,000 after buying an additional 755,856 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,973,509 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $152,040,000 after acquiring an additional 178,344 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 4.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,707,427 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $113,336,000 after purchasing an additional 145,466 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,422,790 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $104,635,000 after acquiring an additional 16,817 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 3,282,015 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $125,340,000 after purchasing an additional 371,304 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 1.6 %

Synchrony Financial stock traded down $0.72 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $43.99. The stock had a trading volume of 2,642,347 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,471,907. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $26.59 and a 52-week high of $45.46. The company has a fifty day moving average of $41.77 and a 200 day moving average of $37.07. The firm has a market cap of $17.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.19). The firm had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.44 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.49% and a return on equity of 16.01%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.35 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 5.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, April 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 5.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on SYF shares. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. JMP Securities boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $35.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 12th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $42.72.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In related news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.26, for a total transaction of $5,557,556.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 660,353 shares in the company, valued at $27,246,164.78. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total value of $264,584.78. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,534,503.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.26, for a total transaction of $5,557,556.96. Following the sale, the insider now owns 660,353 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,246,164.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 148,158 shares of company stock worth $6,106,106 over the last three months. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Synchrony Financial

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.