Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. BTIG Research reduced their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $100.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Hsbc Global Res raised Synchrony Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut shares of Synchrony Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.05.

Synchrony Financial Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of SYF stock opened at $72.63 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $80.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $75.64. The company has a market cap of $26.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $40.54 and a 1-year high of $88.77.

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

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 32,000 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.80, for a total value of $2,329,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 127,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,252,880. This trade represents a 20.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 12,086 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.02, for a total value of $894,605.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 108,271 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,014,219.42. The trade was a 10.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 55,075 shares of company stock valued at $4,036,892. 0.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp boosted its position in Synchrony Financial by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,080,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,355,698,000 after buying an additional 191,920 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 14,335,213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,018,517,000 after purchasing an additional 739,832 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 8.3% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,307,077 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $354,194,000 after buying an additional 406,796 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,134,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $431,999,000 after acquiring an additional 592,567 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $299,360,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

About Synchrony Financial

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.