Reviewing Oportun Financial (NASDAQ:OPRT) and Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) and Oportun Financial (NASDAQ:OPRT) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends and risk.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Synchrony Financial and Oportun Financial, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Synchrony Financial	0	9	10	0	2.53
Oportun Financial	0	3	2	0	2.40

Synchrony Financial currently has a consensus price target of $87.78, suggesting a potential upside of 23.42%. Oportun Financial has a consensus price target of $9.25, suggesting a potential downside of 20.87%. Given Synchrony Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Synchrony Financial is more favorable than Oportun Financial.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

96.5% of Synchrony Financial shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 82.7% of Oportun Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 0.4% of Synchrony Financial shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.6% of Oportun Financial shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Synchrony Financial and Oportun Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Synchrony Financial	14.59%	22.26%	2.79%
Oportun Financial	3.88%	14.67%	1.87%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Synchrony Financial and Oportun Financial”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Synchrony Financial	$15.03 billion	1.47	$3.55 billion	$9.58	7.42
Oportun Financial	$956.70 million	0.56	$25.25 million	$0.74	15.80

Synchrony Financial has higher revenue and earnings than Oportun Financial. Synchrony Financial is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Oportun Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

Synchrony Financial has a beta of 1.4, indicating that its stock price is 40% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Oportun Financial has a beta of 1.29, indicating that its stock price is 29% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Synchrony Financial beats Oportun Financial on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Synchrony Financial

Synchrony Financial is a consumer financial services company that provides credit products and related services through partnerships with retailers, healthcare providers and other businesses. Its offerings include private-label and co-branded credit cards, installment loans and promotional financing options. The company also provides consumer banking products, including savings accounts and certificates of deposit. Its financing solutions serve customers in areas such as retail, home improvement, automotive, health and wellness, and digital commerce, primarily in the United States.

About Oportun Financial

Oportun Financial Corp. is a financial technology company that provides credit products and related financial services to consumers in the United States, with a particular focus on serving Hispanic and other traditionally underserved communities. The company uses data-driven underwriting and digital tools to offer customers access to credit, including borrowers who may have limited credit histories. Oportun’s primary products have included unsecured personal loans and credit cards. Through its digital platform and customer service channels, the company has also provided tools intended to help consumers manage borrowing, make payments and build or strengthen their credit profiles.