Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Acquires 20,040 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 99.8% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 40,128 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 20,040 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $2,124,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BTC Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Synchrony Financial by 25.9% in the 1st quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 65,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,485,000 after acquiring an additional 13,526 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Synchrony Financial by 70.2% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 10,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $564,000 after acquiring an additional 4,397 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $57,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,934,000. Finally, NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Synchrony Financial by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 25,622 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,665,000 after acquiring an additional 6,120 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total transaction of $2,441,184.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 146,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,807,943.96. This represents a 21.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on SYF shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $44.00 price target (down from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Synchrony Financial from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.78.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of SYF stock opened at $64.99 on Thursday. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $40.55 and a 52-week high of $70.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.74 billion, a PE ratio of 8.91, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.44. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.54.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.26. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 19.68% and a net margin of 13.00%. The business had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.80 billion. On average, analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. This is a boost from Synchrony Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 16.46%.

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.