Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Raised to “Overweight” at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) from an underweight rating to an overweight rating in a report published on Thursday morning, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $82.00 price objective on the financial services provider’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $40.00.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on SYF. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Compass Point upped their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.63.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

SYF opened at $64.27 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Synchrony Financial has a 12-month low of $35.29 and a 12-month high of $69.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $62.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.02 billion, a PE ratio of 8.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.63.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.76 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 13.98%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.48 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 6.51 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.05%.

Insider Activity

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.13, for a total transaction of $1,209,221.42. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 99,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,498,831.59. The trade was a 18.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $2,220,253.37. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 127,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,291,879.13. This trade represents a 21.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. National Pension Service raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 22.7% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 957,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,773,000 after buying an additional 177,051 shares during the period. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the second quarter worth $951,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 134.4% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,004 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 1,149 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lifted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 9.1% in the 2nd quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 443,251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,917,000 after purchasing an additional 36,865 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 119.0% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 243,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,123,000 after purchasing an additional 132,047 shares during the period. 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.