Analysts Set Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Price Target at $74.17

Key Points

• Synchrony Financial has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with twelve out of eighteen recommending a buy.
• The company's average 12-month price target among analysts is currently set at $74.17, with some as high as $100.00 following recent upgrades.
• Synchrony Financial's recent earnings report showed EPS of $2.50, exceeding expectations, despite a slight year-over-year revenue decline.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eighteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $74.17.

SYF has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. BTIG Research upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of SYF traded down $1.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $70.25. The company had a trading volume of 3,539,789 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,245,192. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $64.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $40.54 and a 1-year high of $73.76. The company has a market capitalization of $26.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.53, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.46.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.78. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 21.34%. The business had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.71 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.55 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.56%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 11,380 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total transaction of $739,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 108,062 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,024,030. The trade was a 9.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total transaction of $2,441,184.73. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 146,628 shares in the company, valued at $8,807,943.96. This represents a 21.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SYF. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 337.0% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 590 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. MAI Capital Management boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 36.3% in the first quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 627 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the first quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 355.9% in the first quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 693 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 541 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Synchrony Financial Company 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.