Penbrook Management LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Penbrook Management LLC trimmed its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 5.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,200 shares during the period. Penbrook Management LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $1,048,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth $347,903,000. Sachem Head Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth $142,838,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 340.9% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,512,340 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $163,303,000 after acquiring an additional 1,942,573 shares during the last quarter. Azora Capital LP grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 700.5% in the fourth quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 2,107,839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $137,010,000 after acquiring an additional 1,844,509 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 169.0% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 2,356,862 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $153,196,000 after acquiring an additional 1,480,702 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 1.2%

SYF stock opened at $58.29 on Thursday. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $40.55 and a fifty-two week high of $70.93. The business’s 50-day moving average is $52.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $60.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The company has a market cap of $22.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.42.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.26. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 15.36%. The company had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.80 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This is an increase from Synchrony Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total value of $2,441,184.73. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 146,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,807,943.96. This represents a 21.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SYF has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $44.00 target price (down from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Synchrony Financial from $64.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial cut their target price on Synchrony Financial from $65.00 to $57.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.95.

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.