Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on SYF. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $44.55.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SYF stock traded down $0.36 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $45.16. 3,612,550 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,300,173. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a PE ratio of 6.48, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.60. Synchrony Financial has a twelve month low of $27.30 and a twelve month high of $46.72. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $43.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.10.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 13.49%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.35 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 5.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 31,562 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $1,420,290.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 121,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,446,890. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Synchrony Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 44.1% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $55,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 522 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $60,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

About Synchrony Financial

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.