Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Has $8.32 Million Stock Position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lowered its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 3.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 192,959 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,595 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $8,320,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $55,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 56.6% during the fourth 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 during the period. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 31,562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $1,420,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 121,042 shares in the company, valued at $5,446,890. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SYF traded up $0.85 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $51.36. The company had a trading volume of 112,373 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,166,552. The company has a market capitalization of $20.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.63. Synchrony Financial has a 1 year low of $27.30 and a 1 year high of $52.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $46.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.99.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $5.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.06% and a net margin of 13.52%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.32 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 5.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 24th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 5th. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 14.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Compass Point assumed coverage on Synchrony Financial in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Barclays raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.50.

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.