Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Shares Gap Down - What's Next?

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $69.86, but opened at $66.50. Synchrony Financial shares last traded at $64.78, with a volume of 1,032,247 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on SYF. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $59.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Compass Point lowered Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $68.50.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $66.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $57.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.64.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 16.64%. On average, analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 6.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. Synchrony Financial's payout ratio is 13.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total transaction of $2,220,253.37. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 127,587 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,291,879.13. This represents a 21.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 99,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,498,831.59. The trade was a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. National Pension Service boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 22.7% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 957,758 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $47,773,000 after buying an additional 177,051 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 119.0% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 243,040 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $12,123,000 after acquiring an additional 132,047 shares during the last quarter. Brophy Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the third quarter worth $544,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 2.2% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 487,720 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $24,327,000 after purchasing an additional 10,294 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Unigestion Holding SA acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial during the third quarter valued at $985,000. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.