Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Shares Sold by BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp trimmed its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 65,941 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 11,987 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp's holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $3,289,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cetera Investment Advisers bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the first quarter worth $2,192,000. Cetera Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 13.3% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 10,805 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $466,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 41.8% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,546 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 1,635 shares in the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 24.2% during the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,629 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 46.0% during the 2nd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 17,750 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $838,000 after acquiring an additional 5,589 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Barclays lifted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Thursday, October 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $58.68.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SYF stock traded down $0.32 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $66.82. The stock had a trading volume of 2,082,577 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,941,045. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.02 billion, a PE ratio of 8.72, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.63. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $33.58 and a twelve month high of $69.00. The stock's 50 day moving average is $58.70 and its 200 day moving average is $50.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $3.81 billion during 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.48 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.05%.

Insider Activity at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 127,587 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,291,879.13. This trade represents a 21.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.13, for a total value of $1,209,221.42. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 99,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,498,831.59. The trade was a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.