Diversified Trust Co Decreases Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Diversified Trust Co decreased its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 29.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,513 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 16,358 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co's holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $2,568,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. National Pension Service lifted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 22.7% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 957,758 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $47,773,000 after buying an additional 177,051 shares in the last quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $951,000. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 9.1% during 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. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 119.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Brophy Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the third quarter worth $544,000. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $1,209,221.42. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 99,743 shares in the company, valued at $5,498,831.59. This represents a 18.03 % 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays raised Synchrony Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $59.00 to $79.00 in a research report on Monday. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $65.43.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Synchrony Financial stock traded down $0.78 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $65.80. The stock had a trading volume of 2,729,289 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,502,709. Synchrony Financial has a one year low of $35.29 and a one year high of $69.39. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $25.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.64. The firm's 50 day moving average is $65.34 and its 200 day moving average is $55.03.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.17. The business 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 business's revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.48 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. Synchrony Financial's payout ratio is currently 13.05%.

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.