abrdn plc Lowers Stock Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

abrdn plc reduced its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 469,697 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 25,403 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc owned about 0.12% of Synchrony Financial worth $30,561,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in Synchrony Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $444,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 3.6% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 9,899 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $467,000 after buying an additional 346 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 80,511 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,016,000 after purchasing an additional 3,992 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 21.0% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,711 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $335,000 after buying an additional 1,165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $244,000. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on SYF. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Barclays upgraded Synchrony Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $59.00 to $79.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted 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 report on Wednesday, January 29th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $69.30.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 1.0 %

SYF traded down $0.70 during trading on Friday, reaching $67.51. 2,725,610 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,743,421. The stock's 50-day moving average is $67.17 and its 200 day moving average is $58.05. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $38.17 and a 12 month high of $70.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.28 billion, a PE ratio of 7.91, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 11.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $2,220,253.37. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 127,587 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,291,879.13. The trade was a 21.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.