Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Shares Sold by Lindbrook Capital LLC

Lindbrook Capital LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 39.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 698 shares during the quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $40,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SYF. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,711 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 3.9% during the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 9,886 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $302,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 44.1% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 3.3% during the third quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 15,864 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $485,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DGS Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 16,368 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $625,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of SYF opened at $44.66 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a one year low of $26.59 and a one year high of $45.33. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $41.56 and its 200-day moving average is $36.76.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.49% and a return on equity of 16.01%. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.35 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 5.57 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th will be issued 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 of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 14.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $264,584.78. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,534,503.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $264,584.78. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,534,503.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.26, for a total value of $5,557,556.96. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 660,353 shares in the company, valued at $27,246,164.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 148,158 shares of company stock valued at $6,106,106 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SYF has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stephens raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Bank of America increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JMP Securities increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $35.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $42.72.

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.