Synchrony Financial’s (SYF) “Buy (B-)” Rating Reiterated at Weiss Ratings

Weiss Ratings reissued their buy (b-) rating on shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) in a report issued on Friday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on SYF. UBS Group upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.38.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of NYSE SYF opened at $74.82 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $26.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.17, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.50. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $73.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.86. Synchrony Financial has a 52 week low of $40.54 and a 52 week high of $77.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.64. The firm had revenue of $3.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.79 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 22.96% and a net margin of 15.84%.The company’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.94 earnings per share. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 5th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 5th. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.10%.

Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, October 15th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 3.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 8,514 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $595,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 68,588 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,801,160. This represents a 11.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Darrell Owens sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.95, for a total value of $40,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 21,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,452,227.40. The trade was a 2.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. MGO One Seven LLC grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 34.3% in the third quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 4,067 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 1,039 shares during the period. Associated Banc Corp bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at $307,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 0.8% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 49,251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,499,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 29.1% in the third quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 42,475 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,018,000 after acquiring an additional 9,581 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 13.9% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 64,717 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,598,000 after purchasing an additional 7,903 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.