Aristeia Capital L.L.C. Purchases Shares of 4,971 Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Aristeia Capital L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 4,971 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $323,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Apollon Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Synchrony Financial by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $461,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,085 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $200,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 9,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $604,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co boosted its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,099 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital increased its stake in Synchrony Financial by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 7,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $491,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $64.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $44.00 target price (down previously from $82.00) on shares of Synchrony Financial in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Compass Point cut shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.95.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

Shares of SYF stock opened at $54.22 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. Synchrony Financial has a 12 month low of $40.55 and a 12 month high of $70.93. The firm has a market cap of $20.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.35, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.42. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $51.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $60.25.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.26. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The company had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.80 billion. Research analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This is a positive change from Synchrony Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 5th. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.46%.

About Synchrony Financial

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.