Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $86.49 Million Stock Position in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 10.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,330,396 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 121,112 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.34% of Synchrony Financial worth $86,486,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bogart Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 111.5% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 480 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Synchrony Financial by 301.3% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 151.4% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 807 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

NYSE:SYF opened at $43.76 on Friday. Synchrony Financial has a 52 week low of $39.67 and a 52 week high of $70.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $59.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.62. The firm has a market cap of $17.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.67.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.02. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 15.36%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. Synchrony Financial’s payout ratio is currently 11.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Synchrony Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $40.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target 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. Barclays upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $59.00 to $79.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.26.

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.