Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Sells 157,778 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky decreased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 22.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 541,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 157,778 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky owned about 0.13% of Synchrony Financial worth $23,362,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SYF. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 995.4% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,599,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $241,448,000 after purchasing an additional 5,088,262 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter worth $182,739,000. Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 23.6% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,826,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $146,112,000 after buying an additional 730,318 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,588,159 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $137,032,000 after buying an additional 165,369 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 2.9% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 3,496,009 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $150,748,000 after buying an additional 97,235 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Trading Down 7.4 %

Shares of NYSE SYF traded down $3.57 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $44.99. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,431,068 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,372,373. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market cap of $17.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.63. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $27.30 and a 12 month high of $52.67. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $46.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.24.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.20. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.06% and a net margin of 13.52%. The company had revenue of $5.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.32 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 5th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 5th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.35%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on SYF shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $41.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.50.

Synchrony Financial Company 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.