Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. Sells 226,705 Shares of Synchrony Financial $SYF

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. cut its position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 44.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 284,156 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 226,705 shares during the quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $23,707,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 8.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,302 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 36.2% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 35,582 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,884,000 after acquiring an additional 9,460 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 6,406 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $339,000 after acquiring an additional 459 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 337.0% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 590 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Synchrony Financial by 56.1% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $405,000 after purchasing an additional 2,178 shares during the period. 96.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SYF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Synchrony Financial from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $101.00 to $93.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Synchrony Financial from $91.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Synchrony Financial from $91.00 to $85.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $83.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Synchrony Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Brian D. Doubles sold 217,554 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.68, for a total value of $14,941,608.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 829,222 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,950,966.96. This trade represents a 20.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Curtis Howse sold 7,882 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.71, for a total value of $533,690.22. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 94,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,423,850.83. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 379,928 shares of company stock worth $26,170,764 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYF opened at $68.00 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Synchrony Financial has a 1 year low of $40.54 and a 1 year high of $88.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.64 billion, a PE ratio of 7.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.42. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $70.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.77.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $2.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $3.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.84 billion. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.72% and a return on equity of 23.07%. Synchrony Financial’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.91 earnings per share. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Synchrony Financial will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.92%.

About Synchrony Financial

Synchrony Financial (NYSE: SYF) is a consumer financial services company that specializes in providing point-of-sale financing and private-label, co-branded and branded credit card programs. The company serves as a payments and lending partner to retailers, digital merchants and service providers, offering consumer financing solutions designed to drive customer engagement and sales. Synchrony also operates a direct bank that offers deposit products, including savings accounts and certificates of deposit, which support its funding and customer-facing product suite.

Its core product set includes private-label and co-branded credit cards, general-purpose credit cards, installment loan programs and promotional financing options that are integrated into merchants’ checkout experiences.