DRW Securities LLC Buys New Position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

DRW Securities LLC bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 18,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,195,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $461,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 9,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $604,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. Smithfield Trust Co grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 19.7% in the 4th quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,099 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 7,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 20,208 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,314,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced 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. Compass Point downgraded Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.11.

Synchrony Financial Stock Up 15.3 %

SYF stock opened at $50.53 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.64 billion, a PE ratio of 5.92, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.45. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $39.67 and a twelve month high of $70.93. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $57.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.43.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued 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, equities analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.98%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.