Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd Acquires 3,487 Shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 341.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 4,507 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,487 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $293,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SYF. Bogart Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 111.5% in the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 480 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Synchrony Financial by 151.4% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 807 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 46.5% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on SYF shares. StockNews.com lowered Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $85.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.26.

Synchrony Financial Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of SYF stock opened at $44.82 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $39.67 and a fifty-two week high of $70.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.42 billion, a PE ratio of 5.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.45. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $58.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.66.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. Equities analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.71%.

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.