Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Price Target Raised to $82.00 at Morgan Stanley

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) had its price objective hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $72.00 to $82.00 in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

SYF has been the topic of a number of other reports. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $52.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Rothschild & Co Redburn started coverage on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research report on Friday, August 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, BTIG Research raised shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.00.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $73.23 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $73.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $63.19. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $40.54 and a 52-week high of $77.41.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.78. The company had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.71 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 21.34% and a net margin of 14.43%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.55 earnings per share. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 5th. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synchrony Financial

In other news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 8,514 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $595,980.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 68,588 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,801,160. This represents a 11.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Darrell Owens sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.95, for a total value of $40,770.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 21,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,452,227.40. The trade was a 2.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Synchrony Financial

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 15.1% in the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,106 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 3.1% in the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $333,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 5.5% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 36.3% in the first quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 627 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 6.0% in the second quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $216,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

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.