4,784,983 Shares in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Purchased by Norges Bank

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 4,784,983 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $182,739,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.16% of Synchrony Financial as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 16.0% in the 3rd 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 period. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.7% in 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 period. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 23.6% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,826,080 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $146,112,000 after acquiring an additional 730,318 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,707,427 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $113,336,000 after purchasing an additional 145,466 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,588,159 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $137,032,000 after purchasing an additional 165,369 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 31,562 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $1,420,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 121,042 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,446,890. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 660,353 shares in the company, valued at $27,246,164.78. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 31,562 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $1,420,290.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 121,042 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,446,890. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 172,437 shares of company stock worth $7,242,432. Corporate insiders own 0.65% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 1.5 %

SYF stock traded down $0.67 during trading on Thursday, hitting $42.87. 3,108,246 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,428,692. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $43.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.13, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.58. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $27.30 and a 52-week high of $46.72.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.44 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 13.49%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.35 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 5.75 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, April 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 3rd. Synchrony Financial's payout ratio is 14.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SYF has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of Synchrony Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $43.74.

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.