Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Price Target Raised to $53.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its target price increased by Wells Fargo & Company from $49.00 to $53.00 in a report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on SYF. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Wolfe Research upgraded Synchrony Financial from an underperform rating to an outperform rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $36.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. JMP Securities lifted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a market outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $41.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $50.50.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $49.97 on Thursday. Synchrony Financial has a one year low of $27.30 and a one year high of $52.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.17, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.23.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the firm earned $1.32 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 5.82 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase 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 repurchase up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 14.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

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

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 786.6% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,055 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 936 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $55,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 56.6% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth $60,000. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.