Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Shares Sold by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 390,814 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,072 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $14,636,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 44.1% in 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. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $60,000. Systematic Alpha Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the third quarter worth about $100,000. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,711 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In other 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 sale, the insider now owns 152,604 shares in the company, valued at $6,534,503.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total value of $264,584.78. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares in the company, valued at $6,534,503.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 134,696 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.26, for a total value 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 172,437 shares of company stock worth $7,242,432 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the company. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. StockNews.com upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $30.00 target price on shares of Synchrony Financial in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.74.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SYF opened at $43.94 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a 1 year low of $27.30 and a 1 year high of $46.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.64 billion, a PE ratio of 6.30, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.58.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $5.57 billion during 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 quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.35 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 5.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.35%.

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.