36,038 Shares in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Purchased by Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd.

Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 36,038 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,342,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Bogart Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 111.5% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 480 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 151.4% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 807 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of SYF opened at $61.02 on Thursday. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $40.55 and a fifty-two week high of $70.93. The business has a 50-day moving average of $51.76 and a 200 day moving average of $60.29. The firm has a market cap of $23.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.26. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.80 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. This is a positive change from Synchrony Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 16.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on SYF. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $65.00 to $57.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $44.00 target price (down previously from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.95.

Synchrony Financial 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.