Strs Ohio Trims Stock Holdings in Synchrony Financial $SYF

Strs Ohio lowered its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 76.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,891 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 29,657 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $632,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 34.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 13,595,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $907,356,000 after acquiring an additional 3,494,741 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 8.3% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,307,077 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $354,194,000 after purchasing an additional 406,796 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 7.9% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,542,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $318,236,000 after purchasing an additional 333,093 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial during the second quarter worth $299,360,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 6.1% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,266,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $284,737,000 after buying an additional 245,527 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Curtis Howse sold 12,086 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.02, for a total transaction of $894,605.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 108,271 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,014,219.42. This represents a 10.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Arthur W. Coviello, Jr. sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.93, for a total value of $591,440.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 35,769 shares in the company, valued at $2,644,402.17. This trade represents a 18.28% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 55,075 shares of company stock valued at $4,036,892 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SYF has been the topic of several research reports. Compass Point raised Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $96.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $91.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $73.00 to $81.00 in a report on Friday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $87.05.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $73.37 on Friday. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $40.54 and a fifty-two week high of $88.77. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $81.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $75.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market cap of $26.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.43.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $2.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.16. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.72% and a return on equity of 23.07%. The company had revenue of $3.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.91 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, October 15th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 3.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 6th. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 13.10%.

Synchrony Financial News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Synchrony Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Schaeffer/Forbes says SYF could rally back toward prior highs, arguing valuation and buyback-driven EPS support upside. Synchrony Financial Stock Could Rally Back Near Record Peak
• Positive Sentiment: Compass Point upgraded SYF to a Buy with a $96 target, citing attractive multi‑year earnings leverage. Compass Point upgrade (Finviz)
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG reaffirmed a Buy and $96 target, saying near‑term expense pressures mask 2026 earnings power. BTIG buy reaffirmed
• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen/TipRanks maintained a Buy with a $95 target, highlighting potential 2027 earnings upside after near‑term investments. TD Cowen buy maintained
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 2025 earnings call transcript and deep dives: SYF reported $2.18 EPS (beat) on slightly below‑estimate revenue and reiterated FY26 EPS guidance range; useful for details on restructuring and expense outlook. Q4 2025 earnings call transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysis (Seeking Alpha) notes 2025 EPS growth via margin expansion and buybacks but flags flat loan growth, rising provisions and political/regulatory risks that could pressure future earnings. Synchrony Financial: Growth At A Cost
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reports profit was hit by a restructuring charge and higher costs, a direct near‑term earnings headwind cited by management. Synchrony Financial profit hit by restructuring charge, higher costs
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple firms trimmed price targets this week (Truist $92→$84, JPMorgan $86→$84, RBC $91→$85, Barclays $101→$93), putting near‑term downward pressure despite some retained “overweight”/“neutral” stances. Analyst price target changes (Benzinga)

Synchrony Financial Profile

Synchrony Financial (NYSE: SYF) is a consumer financial services company that specializes in providing point-of-sale financing and private-label, co-branded and branded credit card programs. The company serves as a payments and lending partner to retailers, digital merchants and service providers, offering consumer financing solutions designed to drive customer engagement and sales. Synchrony also operates a direct bank that offers deposit products, including savings accounts and certificates of deposit, which support its funding and customer-facing product suite.

Its core product set includes private-label and co-branded credit cards, general-purpose credit cards, installment loan programs and promotional financing options that are integrated into merchants’ checkout experiences.