Waldron Private Wealth LLC Trims Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Waldron Private Wealth LLC decreased its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 48.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,233 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,915 shares during the quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $275,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. National Pension Service raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 22.7% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 957,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,773,000 after purchasing an additional 177,051 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 119.0% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 243,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,123,000 after purchasing an additional 132,047 shares during the period. Brophy Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at $544,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 2.2% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 487,720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,327,000 after purchasing an additional 10,294 shares during the period. Finally, Unigestion Holding SA purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at $985,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SYF opened at $68.90 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.47. The company has a market cap of $26.82 billion, a PE ratio of 8.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.64. Synchrony Financial has a 12-month low of $37.91 and a 12-month high of $70.93.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 15.36%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 6.73 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.71%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total transaction of $2,220,253.37. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 127,587 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,291,879.13. This represents a 21.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays upgraded Synchrony Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $59.00 to $79.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $59.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 price objective on Synchrony Financial in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.30.

Synchrony Financial 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.