BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Sells 4,700 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S reduced its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 39.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,700 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $271,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the period. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $55,000. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $60,000. Systematic Alpha Investments LLC acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at about $100,000. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,711 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total value of $264,584.78. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares in the company, valued at $6,534,503.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 660,353 shares in the company, valued at $27,246,164.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 172,437 shares of company stock valued at $7,242,432. Corporate insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on SYF shares. Bank of America increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Synchrony Financial from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Barclays raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.74.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

NYSE SYF opened at $43.33 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.05. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $27.30 and a twelve month high of $46.72. The stock has a market cap of $17.40 billion, a PE ratio of 6.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the business earned $1.35 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 5.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 3rd. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.35%.

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.