StockNews.com Downgrades Synovus Financial (NYSE:SNV) to Sell

StockNews.com lowered shares of Synovus Financial (NYSE:SNV) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Thursday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on SNV. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Synovus Financial from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Synovus Financial from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Synovus Financial from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Synovus Financial from $41.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Synovus Financial from $42.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Synovus Financial currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $46.44.

Synovus Financial Stock Performance

SNV opened at $44.62 on Thursday. Synovus Financial has a 12-month low of $24.40 and a 12-month high of $47.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.42 billion, a PE ratio of 15.28, a P/E/G ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 1.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $43.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $40.24.

Synovus Financial (NYSE:SNV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The bank reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.20. Synovus Financial had a net margin of 8.40% and a return on equity of 12.76%. The company had revenue of $563.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $543.52 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.16 EPS. Synovus Financial’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Synovus Financial will post 4.05 EPS for the current year.

Synovus Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 19th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.41%. Synovus Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.05%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Synovus Financial news, EVP Thomas T. Dierdorff sold 614 shares of Synovus Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.20, for a total transaction of $28,366.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $685,284.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Synovus Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SNV. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Synovus Financial by 56.9% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,838,693 shares of the bank’s stock worth $295,127,000 after acquiring an additional 2,843,488 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Synovus Financial by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,762,983 shares of the bank’s stock worth $231,597,000 after acquiring an additional 491,036 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Synovus Financial during the 4th quarter worth $59,941,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Synovus Financial by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,410,088 shares of the bank’s stock worth $53,090,000 after acquiring an additional 53,974 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Synovus Financial by 181.0% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,302,379 shares of the bank’s stock worth $52,343,000 after acquiring an additional 838,932 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.85% of the company’s stock.

About Synovus Financial

Synovus Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Synovus Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking products and services. It operates through four segments: Community Banking, Wholesale Banking, Consumer Banking, and Financial Management Services. The company's commercial banking services include treasury and asset management, capital market, and institutional trust services, as well as commercial, financial, and real estate lending services.