Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.46 EPS

Key Points

• Synchrony Financial reported quarterly EPS of $2.59, beating Wall Street’s estimate of $2.13 by $0.46 and edging above the $2.50 it earned a year earlier.
• The company raised its FY 2026 guidance to $9.25-$9.50 EPS, signaling improved expectations following the earnings beat.
• Shares were slightly lower after the report, and the stock was trading around $73.48 with analysts maintaining a Moderate Buy consensus target of $87.32.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The financial services provider reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.46, Briefing.com reports. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.80% and a return on equity of 23.41%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.50 earnings per share. Synchrony Financial updated its FY 2026 guidance to 9.250-9.500 EPS.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 0.2%

Synchrony Financial stock opened at $73.48 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $73.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.30. The company has a market capitalization of $24.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.32. Synchrony Financial has a 52 week low of $63.08 and a 52 week high of $88.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 51,258 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total value of $3,651,107.34. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 132,664 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,449,656.72. This represents a 27.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SYF. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.1% during the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,027 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its position in Synchrony Financial by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 11,866 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $990,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 22.7% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 904 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 24,910 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,662,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 7,313 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $610,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SYF has been the subject of several recent research reports. BTIG Research lowered Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Loop Capital initiated coverage on Synchrony Financial in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. They issued a "hold" rating and a $81.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $71.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Synchrony Financial from $81.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $87.32.

Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, April 21st that permits the company to repurchase $0.00 in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Synchrony Financial

Synchrony Financial NYSE: SYF is a consumer financial services company that specializes in providing point-of-sale financing and private-label, co-branded and branded credit card programs. The company serves as a payments and lending partner to retailers, digital merchants and service providers, offering consumer financing solutions designed to drive customer engagement and sales. Synchrony also operates a direct bank that offers deposit products, including savings accounts and certificates of deposit, which support its funding and customer-facing product suite.

Its core product set includes private-label and co-branded credit cards, general-purpose credit cards, installment loan programs and promotional financing options that are integrated into merchants' checkout experiences.

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