Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Raises Stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 340.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,512,340 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,942,573 shares during the quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned 0.65% of Synchrony Financial worth $163,303,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bogart Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 111.5% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 480 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 151.4% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 807 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 46.5% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 810 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 1.0 %

SYF stock opened at $51.42 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $52.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $60.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $40.55 and a 1-year high of $70.93. The firm has a market cap of $19.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.02, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.45.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.26. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.80 billion. Research analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 5th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.33%. This is a positive change from Synchrony Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Synchrony Financial's payout ratio is currently 11.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SYF has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Cfra Research upgraded Synchrony Financial to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $59.00 to $79.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Compass Point downgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $44.00 price objective (down from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $63.95.

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.

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