Westpac Banking Corp Sells 15,223 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Westpac Banking Corp lowered its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 14.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 87,101 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 15,223 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $5,662,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Huntington National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,331 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 24.9% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 254,767 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,560,000 after buying an additional 50,779 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 11,746 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $764,000 after buying an additional 401 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $255,000. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 32.0% during the fourth quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 109,318 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,106,000 after acquiring an additional 26,472 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 3.5 %

Shares of SYF opened at $55.11 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.67. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $39.67 and a twelve month high of $70.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.45, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 15.36%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SYF has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Synchrony Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $40.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.10.

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.