Scotia Capital Inc. Makes New Investment in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Scotia Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 10,446 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $679,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 39,750 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,583,000 after purchasing an additional 2,695 shares during the last quarter. DRW Securities LLC acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,195,000. Martingale Asset Management L P boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 50,086 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,256,000 after acquiring an additional 5,870 shares during the period. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $622,000. Finally, Abacus FCF Advisors LLC grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 46.6% in the fourth quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC now owns 87,365 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,679,000 after acquiring an additional 27,776 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Synchrony Financial Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE SYF traded up $1.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $47.86. The company had a trading volume of 3,507,333 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,961,007. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.61 billion, a PE ratio of 5.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.45. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $39.85 and a twelve month high of $70.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The stock's 50 day moving average is $54.60 and its 200-day moving average is $60.27.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.09%. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SYF. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Compass Point cut Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $44.00 target price (down from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Barclays upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $59.00 to $79.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $65.11.

Synchrony Financial 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.