Prudential PLC Acquires New Position in Synovus Financial Corp. (NYSE:SNV)

Prudential PLC purchased a new position in shares of Synovus Financial Corp. (NYSE:SNV - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 34,659 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $1,776,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SNV. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Synovus Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $77,209,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Synovus Financial by 12.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,674,226 shares of the bank's stock valued at $430,213,000 after purchasing an additional 1,095,557 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Synovus Financial by 349.4% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 529,147 shares of the bank's stock worth $27,108,000 after purchasing an additional 411,411 shares during the last quarter. TruWealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Synovus Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $12,350,000. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP grew its holdings in Synovus Financial by 478.5% in the 4th quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 270,732 shares of the bank's stock valued at $13,870,000 after buying an additional 223,929 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.85% of the company's stock.

Synovus Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SNV traded down $1.14 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $38.43. The company's stock had a trading volume of 606,822 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,430,166. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $5.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.16. Synovus Financial Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $33.44 and a fifty-two week high of $59.92. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $48.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.85.

Synovus Financial (NYSE:SNV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The bank reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.09. Synovus Financial had a net margin of 14.05% and a return on equity of 14.70%. The business had revenue of $580.58 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $566.83 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.80 earnings per share. Synovus Financial's revenue was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Synovus Financial Corp. will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synovus Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.06%. This is an increase from Synovus Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Synovus Financial's payout ratio is presently 51.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SNV has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Synovus Financial in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $76.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on Synovus Financial from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $64.00 price objective on shares of Synovus Financial in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Raymond James lowered Synovus Financial from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Synovus Financial from $66.00 to $60.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $58.17.

Synovus Financial Profile

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.