StockNews.com Upgrades Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) to “Buy”

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Thursday.

SYF has been the subject of several other research reports. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Synchrony Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.72.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 0.0 %

NYSE:SYF opened at $44.67 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.22. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $26.59 and a fifty-two week high of $45.46. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $41.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $36.86. The stock has a market cap of $18.17 billion, a PE ratio of 6.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.61.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.19). Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.49% and a return on equity of 16.01%. The business had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.35 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider David P. Melito sold 7,283 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.99, for a total transaction of $283,964.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 14,183 shares in the company, valued at $552,995.17. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Curtis Howse sold 6,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total value of $264,584.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 152,604 shares in the company, valued at $6,534,503.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider David P. Melito sold 7,283 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.99, for a total value of $283,964.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 14,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $552,995.17. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 148,158 shares of company stock worth $6,106,106 over the last three months. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its position in 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 valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the period. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the first quarter valued at $60,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in Synchrony Financial by 56.6% in the fourth 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 period. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $55,000. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Synchrony Financial

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.