New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Invests $1.61 Million in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 24,751 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,609,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 5,509,314 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $358,105,000 after purchasing an additional 380,870 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $347,903,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 4,447,275 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $221,830,000 after buying an additional 157,948 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,083,329 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $200,756,000 after buying an additional 481,750 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,943,817 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $126,348,000 after acquiring an additional 279,517 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Synchrony Financial Trading Down 14.5 %

NYSE:SYF traded down $7.98 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $47.07. 7,023,926 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,243,501. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.67. The firm's fifty day moving average is $60.22 and its 200-day moving average is $60.67. Synchrony Financial has a 12-month low of $39.67 and a 12-month high of $70.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on SYF. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $85.00 to $70.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com lowered shares of Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $59.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $67.35.

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.