The Goldman Sachs Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Stock

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF - Free Report) had its price target increased by The Goldman Sachs Group from $72.50 to $82.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the financial services provider's stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 price objective on Synchrony Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $60.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. BTIG Research cut shares of Synchrony Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $65.43.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of SYF stock traded down $0.78 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $65.80. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,729,289 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,502,709. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $35.29 and a 1-year high of $69.39. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $65.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.96. The company has a market capitalization of $25.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.64. 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 posted 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 the consensus estimate of $3.76 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 16.64%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.48 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 6.51 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. Synchrony Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.05%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 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 transaction of $2,220,253.37. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 127,587 shares in the company, valued at $8,291,879.13. The trade was a 21.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 99,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,498,831.59. This represents a 18.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SYF. Graypoint LLC increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 4.0% in the third quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,668 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 15,499 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $773,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 19,995 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $997,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital raised its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 3.3% during the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 7,508 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $387,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 0.5% during the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 52,242 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,465,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.