Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Sells 2,244 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. cut its position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 19.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,437 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,244 shares during the quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $500,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SYF. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 178,811 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,787,000 after purchasing an additional 12,492 shares during the last quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Synchrony Financial by 25.9% during the first quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 65,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,485,000 after buying an additional 13,526 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 25,622 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,665,000 after buying an additional 6,120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,121,000. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 40,639 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total transaction of $2,441,184.73. Following the sale, the insider now owns 146,628 shares in the company, valued at $8,807,943.96. The trade was a 21.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Synchrony Financial stock opened at $59.76 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The company has a market cap of $22.75 billion, a PE ratio of 7.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a 50 day moving average of $54.83 and a 200-day moving average of $59.75. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $40.55 and a 1-year high of $70.93.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.26. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 15.36%. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.80 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. This is a boost from Synchrony Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 16.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on SYF. Wall Street Zen raised Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $76.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.78.

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.