Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-one research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $87.0526.

SYF has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Synchrony Financial from $86.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 1.3%

Synchrony Financial stock opened at $72.92 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $40.54 and a 1-year high of $88.77. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $80.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.87. The company has a market capitalization of $25.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.85, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.43.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $2.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.16. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.72% and a return on equity of 23.07%. The firm had revenue of $3.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.91 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, October 15th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 3.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 6th. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 12.92%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Arthur W. Coviello, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.32, for a total value of $289,280.00. Following the sale, the director owned 32,444 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,346,350.08. This trade represents a 10.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 52,556 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.32, for a total transaction of $3,800,849.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 94,196 shares in the company, valued at $6,812,254.72. This represents a 35.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 88,556 shares of company stock valued at $6,419,730. 0.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 1,995 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $166,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 40.2% in the 3rd quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 474 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 34.4% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 543 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 15.1% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,106 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Community Bank increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. United Community Bank now owns 4,469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

More Synchrony Financial News

Here are the key news stories impacting Synchrony Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised several near-term and FY2026 estimates, including FY2026 EPS to $9.29 (from $8.94), Q1 2026 to $2.30 (from $2.04), Q2 2026 to $2.27 (from $2.14), and Q4 2026 to $2.22 (from $2.19). These upward revisions signal stronger near-term earnings expectations.
• Positive Sentiment: Short interest fell materially in January — down ~27% vs. Jan 15 to ~13.14M shares (3.7% of float), implying reduced bearish positioning and a lower short-squeeze risk.
• Neutral Sentiment: Management presented at the UBS Financial Services Conference; the transcript is available for investors reviewing management commentary and strategic color. UBS Conference Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks trimmed several 2026–2027 quarter and full‑year forecasts: Q4 2027 to $2.52 (from $2.63), Q3 2027 to $2.75 (from $2.79), Q1 2027 to $2.14 (from $2.33), Q3 2026 to $2.50 (from $2.57), and cut FY2027 to $10.02 (from $10.16). Those downward revisions to 2027 estimates likely weigh on forward-growth sentiment.

Synchrony Financial Company Profile

Synchrony Financial (NYSE: SYF) is a consumer financial services company that specializes in providing point-of-sale financing and private-label, co-branded and branded credit card programs. The company serves as a payments and lending partner to retailers, digital merchants and service providers, offering consumer financing solutions designed to drive customer engagement and sales. Synchrony also operates a direct bank that offers deposit products, including savings accounts and certificates of deposit, which support its funding and customer-facing product suite.

Its core product set includes private-label and co-branded credit cards, general-purpose credit cards, installment loan programs and promotional financing options that are integrated into merchants’ checkout experiences.