Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 5,422 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 74% compared to the average volume of 3,114 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SYF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Synchrony Financial from $62.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Barclays raised shares of Synchrony Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $59.00 to $79.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $85.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Synchrony Financial from $82.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Eight investment 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Synchrony Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.11.

Synchrony Financial Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE SYF traded up $0.92 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $45.73. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,357,542 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,420,311. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $58.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $60.66. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.35, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.45. Synchrony Financial has a fifty-two week low of $39.67 and a fifty-two week high of $70.93.

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 net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 18.30%. Equities research 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 dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.71%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $461,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake 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 buying an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC boosted its holdings 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 worth $604,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 19.7% in 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 during the period. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital lifted its position in Synchrony Financial by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 7,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $491,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

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.