Benjamin Edwards Inc. Invests $1.29 Million in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 25,876 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,291,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of SYF. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 92.7% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 607 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the period. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the second quarter valued at $33,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 83.6% in the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 716 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the second quarter worth about $39,000. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on SYF. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. BTIG Research cut shares of Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Compass Point raised their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Synchrony Financial from $64.00 to $72.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $58.68.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE SYF traded up $1.00 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $67.92. 3,423,060 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,936,448. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $59.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $51.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The company has a market capitalization of $26.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.87, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.63. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $34.42 and a 52-week high of $69.00.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.17. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 13.98%. The business had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.76 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.48 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.05%.

Insider Activity at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $5,498,831.59. The trade was a 18.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 127,587 shares in the company, 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. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.