UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC cut its position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 4.1% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,194,660 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 177,410 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $209,230,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 3.2% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 70,248 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,504,000 after purchasing an additional 2,200 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the 3rd quarter worth about $8,174,000. Townsquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $245,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at about $110,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial during the third quarter worth about $791,000. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Synchrony Financial Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:SYF opened at $67.52 on Friday. Synchrony Financial has a 1 year low of $31.26 and a 1 year high of $68.69. The stock has a market cap of $26.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $57.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $50.51.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.17. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 16.64%. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is 13.05%.

Insider Transactions at Synchrony Financial

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Curtis Howse sold 21,934 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.13, for a total value of $1,209,221.42. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 99,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,498,831.59. The trade was a 18.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 34,163 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $2,220,253.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 127,587 shares in the company, valued at $8,291,879.13. This trade represents a 21.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SYF has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays upped their price target on Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 price objective on Synchrony Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.43.

Synchrony Financial 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.