Strategic Investment Advisors MI Increases Holdings in Synchrony Financial $SYF

Strategic Investment Advisors MI boosted its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 19.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 75,987 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,133 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Advisors MI’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $5,169,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 10.9% in the first quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 6,588 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $448,000 after buying an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 17.3% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,588 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $448,000 after buying an additional 970 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 39.4% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 825,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $56,179,000 after buying an additional 233,580 shares in the last quarter. Estate Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,778,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 902,031 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,356,000 after acquiring an additional 64,196 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $71.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. They set a “hold” rating and a $81.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $81.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Synchrony Financial from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.89.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 51,258 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total value of $3,651,107.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 132,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,449,656.72. The trade was a 27.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Synchrony Financial stock opened at $74.99 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.68, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $73.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.71. Synchrony Financial has a 52 week low of $63.08 and a 52 week high of $88.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.45. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.72 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 23.09% and a net margin of 15.44%.During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.50 earnings per share. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.250-9.500 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 5th will be given a $0.34 dividend. This is a boost from Synchrony Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 5th. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 13.93%.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, April 21st that permits the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

About Synchrony Financial

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.