12,751 Shares in Synchrony Financial $SYF Acquired by North Dakota State Investment Board

North Dakota State Investment Board acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 12,751 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,064,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SYF. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 8.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,302 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $439,000 after buying an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 36.2% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 35,582 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,884,000 after acquiring an additional 9,460 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 6,406 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $339,000 after acquiring an additional 459 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 337.0% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 590 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares during the period. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Synchrony Financial by 56.1% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $405,000 after acquiring an additional 2,178 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 3.8%

Synchrony Financial stock opened at $72.06 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $24.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.45, a PEG ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a 1 year low of $55.67 and a 1 year high of $88.77. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $70.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.86.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.13. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.80% and a return on equity of 23.41%. The company had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.89 earnings per share. Synchrony Financial’s quarterly revenue was down 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 9.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, April 21st that permits the company to buyback $0.00 in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 5th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 12.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 51,258 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total value of $3,651,107.34. Following the sale, the insider owned 132,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,449,656.72. The trade was a 27.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 217,554 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.68, for a total transaction of $14,941,608.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 829,222 shares in the company, valued at $56,950,966.96. This represents a 20.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 374,630 shares of company stock valued at $25,731,741 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. Compass Point upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $96.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $91.00 to $85.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, BTIG Research cut shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.32.

Synchrony Financial Company Profile

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.