UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Stock

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its price objective upped by UBS Group from $58.00 to $66.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

SYF has been the topic of several other reports. Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Synchrony Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $40.00 to $82.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $72.50 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Compass Point upped their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Synchrony Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $59.00 to $79.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.45.

Synchrony Financial Stock Up 1.8 %

SYF opened at $66.00 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.64. Synchrony Financial has a one year low of $35.29 and a one year high of $69.39. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $66.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $55.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.17. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 13.98%. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.13, for a total value of $1,209,221.42. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 99,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,498,831.59. This trade represents a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $2,220,253.37. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 127,587 shares in the company, valued at $8,291,879.13. This trade represents a 21.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Burney Co. increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 536.8% during the fourth quarter. Burney Co. now owns 284,284 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,478,000 after buying an additional 239,643 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 26.1% during the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 20,179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,312,000 after acquiring an additional 4,173 shares during the period. Kathmere Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 8,741 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $568,000 after acquiring an additional 634 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $345,000 after purchasing an additional 694 shares during the period. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 62.9% during the fourth quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 7,394 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $481,000 after purchasing an additional 2,856 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.