AXQ Capital LP Acquires New Holdings in Synchrony Financial $SYF

AXQ Capital LP purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 16,736 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,396,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SYF. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth $383,231,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 34.6% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 13,595,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $907,356,000 after purchasing an additional 3,494,741 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 48.3% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 4,349,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $309,001,000 after purchasing an additional 1,416,909 shares during the last quarter. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth $84,494,000. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 222.5% in the second quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 937,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,555,000 after purchasing an additional 646,642 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SYF has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Friday, May 22nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $81.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $71.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Monday, April 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.05.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 51,258 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total transaction of $3,651,107.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 132,664 shares in the company, valued at $9,449,656.72. The trade was a 27.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of SYF opened at $70.90 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.85 billion, a PE ratio of 7.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $56.51 and a 1-year high of $88.77. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $72.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.73.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.81 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.80% and a return on equity of 23.41%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 9.29 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 5th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 5th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 12.41%.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 21st that allows the company to buyback $0.00 in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Company Profile

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.