Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 1.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,069,094 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 17,160 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.27% of Synchrony Financial worth $53,326,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Swedbank AB increased its position in Synchrony Financial by 23.8% during the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 99,461 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,694,000 after purchasing an additional 19,098 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $2,192,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 998,350 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,011,000 after acquiring an additional 30,366 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 22.7% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 957,758 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $47,773,000 after purchasing an additional 177,051 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 35.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,300,576 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $56,082,000 after purchasing an additional 342,979 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.13, for a total value of $1,209,221.42. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 99,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,498,831.59. The trade was a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.73, for a total transaction of $3,490,637.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 76,251 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,563,209.23. The trade was a 49.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Synchrony Financial Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of SYF traded up $0.09 on Friday, reaching $64.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,571,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,985,667. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $28.84 and a twelve month high of $67.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.30 billion, a PE ratio of 8.48, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.59. 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 fifty day moving average of $54.02 and a 200-day moving average of $49.03.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.76 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 13.98%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 6.52 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. Synchrony Financial's payout ratio is currently 13.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 price objective on Synchrony Financial in a report on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Synchrony Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Compass Point lifted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $56.60.

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.