IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF – received rating) up 19.5% in the first quarter, according to the most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 86,885 shares of the financial services provider after purchasing a further 14,173 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were valued at $3,024,000 at the end of the last reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently changed their holdings in the company. Moors & Cabot Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial valued at approximately $26,000 during the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC bought a new position in Synchrony Financial stock valued at approximately $30,000 during the fourth quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new interest in Synchrony Financial valued at approximately $30,000 during the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management increased its holding in Synchrony Financial by 1,219.7% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 871 shares of the $40,000 financial services firm after buying another 805 shares last quarter. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its holding in Synchrony Financial by 115.7% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 964 shares of the financial services provider, valued at $45,000, after purchasing an additional 517 shares last quarter. 98.26% of the shares are currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

shares of SYF opened at $28.53 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $34.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.21. The company has a leverage ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $27.40 and a 52-week high of $52.49. The company has a market cap of $14.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.87, a PEG ratio of 0.23, and a beta of 1.43.

synchronization finances (NYSE:SYF – received rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 18th. The financial services firm reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.73 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.20. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 29.99% and a net margin of 26.26%. The company had revenue of $3.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.66 billion. In the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.73 per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 5.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial announced that its board of directors initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, April 18, allowing the company to repurchase $2.80 billion of stock. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to acquire up to 13.6% of its shares through purchases on the open market. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 2 received a dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Friday April 29th. That equates to an annualized dividend of $0.88 and a yield of 3.08%. Synchrony Financial’s RTP is 11.94%.

Several brokers have recently commented on SYF. Stephens lowered its target price on Synchrony Financial to $47.00 from $54.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report Tuesday, April 19. Wolfe Research lowered Synchrony Financial to an underperform rating from a peer perform rating and set a price target of $22.00 for the stock. in a report on Thursday, May 12. Bank of America lowered its target price on Synchrony Financial to $45.00 from $52.00 in a report on Thursday, March 17. Goldman Sachs Group raised its target price on Synchrony Financial to $45.00 from $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 19. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered her target price on Synchrony Financial to $42.00 from $49.00, ranking the stock “overweight” in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has assigned a sell rating to the stock, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $50.61.

Synchrony Financial company profile (received rating)

Synchrony Financial, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer financial services company in the United States. It offers lending products such as credit cards, commercial lending products and consumer installment loans. The Company also offers private label credit cards, dual card, co-branded 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 for both retail and commercial customers, and accepts deposits through third-party securities brokerage firms.

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