Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Hits New 12-Month High After Dividend Announcement

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $44.45 and last traded at $43.97, with a volume of 1534969 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $42.86.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 14.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SYF has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Synchrony Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $42.72.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.41, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.61. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $36.76.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.19). The firm had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 prior year, the company posted $1.35 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 5.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $264,584.78. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,534,503.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.26, for a total transaction of $5,557,556.96. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 660,353 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,246,164.78. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $264,584.78. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares in the company, valued at $6,534,503.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 148,158 shares of company stock valued at $6,106,106. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 0.7% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 38,247 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,649,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 0.7% in the first quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 35,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,518,000 after acquiring an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 34,804 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,329,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 8.3% in the first quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,509 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $151,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 6,933 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $265,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.