Ritholtz Wealth Management Boosts Position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 15.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,436 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,449 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management's holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $2,108,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Graypoint LLC boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,668 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $233,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 7,700 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 1.3% in the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 15,499 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $773,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 20,208 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,314,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 52,242 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,465,000 after buying an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on SYF. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $72.50 to $82.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Synchrony Financial from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $59.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Truist Financial assumed coverage on Synchrony Financial in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a "hold" rating and a $72.00 target price for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $65.45.

Insider Activity at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 99,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,498,831.59. This represents 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 the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 127,587 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,291,879.13. The trade was 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 Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of Synchrony Financial stock traded up $0.92 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $68.73. The company had a trading volume of 2,326,369 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,599,523. The company has a 50 day moving average of $66.27 and a 200 day moving average of $56.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.64. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $35.29 and a 52-week high of $69.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.76 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 13.98%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.48 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. Synchrony Financial's payout ratio is 13.05%.

About Synchrony Financial

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.