Synovus Financial (NYSE:SNV) Upgraded to “Overweight” at Barclays

Barclays upgraded shares of Synovus Financial (NYSE:SNV) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a report issued on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $46.00 price target on the bank’s stock, up from their previous price target of $39.00.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Synovus Financial from $44.00 to $41.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Raymond James cut Synovus Financial from a strong-buy rating to a market perform rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Synovus Financial from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a market perform rating and set a $38.00 target price (down previously from $46.00) on shares of Synovus Financial in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Synovus Financial from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an in-line rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $42.00.

Synovus Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SNV opened at $37.95 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $37.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $37.75. The firm has a market cap of $5.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.00, a PEG ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89. Synovus Financial has a twelve month low of $24.40 and a twelve month high of $40.92.

Synovus Financial (NYSE:SNV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The bank reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $537.73 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $547.62 million. Synovus Financial had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 13.29%. The company’s revenue was down 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Synovus Financial will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synovus Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 20th will be issued a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 20th. Synovus Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 52.05%.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Eli Samaha sold 6,803 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.22, for a total value of $171,571.66. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,466,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,984,953.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP D Wayne Akins, Jr. purchased 24,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $37.40 per share, for a total transaction of $916,300.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now owns 41,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,566,461.60. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Eli Samaha sold 6,803 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.22, for a total value of $171,571.66. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,466,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,984,953.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 179,712 shares of company stock worth $4,528,878. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Synovus Financial

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of SNV. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Synovus Financial by 43.5% in the first quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,224 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Synovus Financial by 18.5% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,906 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new position in shares of Synovus Financial during the first quarter valued at $100,000. EMC Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Synovus Financial by 28.5% during the first quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 9,632 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 2,138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Comerica Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Synovus Financial by 93.1% during the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 121,852 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,881,000 after purchasing an additional 58,738 shares during the period. 83.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Synovus Financial

Synovus Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Synovus Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking products and services. It operates through four segments: Community Banking, Wholesale Banking, Consumer Banking, and Financial Management Services. The company's commercial banking services include treasury and asset management, capital market, and institutional trust services, as well as commercial, financial, and real estate lending services.