Unigestion Holding SA Lowers Position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Unigestion Holding SA reduced its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 7.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,229 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,510 shares during the period. Unigestion Holding SA’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $1,185,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $452,000. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 119.0% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 243,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,123,000 after purchasing an additional 132,047 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 178,811 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,787,000 after purchasing an additional 12,492 shares during the period. Brophy Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $544,000. Finally, Summit Trail Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $423,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $85.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $59.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.26.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $43.76 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $60.62. Synchrony Financial has a 52 week low of $39.67 and a 52 week high of $70.93. The company has a market cap of $17.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.12, a P/E/G 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. Equities research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.71%.

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.