Aigen Investment Management LP Makes New $737,000 Investment in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 19,301 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $737,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SYF. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,274 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $60,000. Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,711 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $104,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Systematic Alpha Investments LLC acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $100,000. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

NYSE:SYF traded down $1.26 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $43.54. 3,453,481 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,442,019. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $27.30 and a 12 month high of $46.72. The stock has a market cap of $17.48 billion, a PE ratio of 6.25, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The company has a fifty day moving average of $43.01 and a 200 day moving average of $38.93.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $5.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 prior year, the business earned $1.35 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 5.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. Synchrony Financial's payout ratio is 14.35%.

Synchrony Financial announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, April 24th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 5.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on SYF shares. Oppenheimer restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective 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. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $43.74.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 152,604 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,534,503.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $264,584.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,534,503.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.26, for a total value of $5,557,556.96. Following the completion of 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. In the last three months, insiders sold 172,437 shares of company stock valued at $7,242,432. 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.