Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Invests $1.20 Million in Synchrony Financial $SYF

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 17,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,204,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. FWL Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Synchrony Financial in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Reflection Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Synchrony Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:SYF opened at $76.20 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $73.51 and its 200-day moving average is $74.24. Synchrony Financial has a 52-week low of $63.08 and a 52-week high of $88.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The company has a market cap of $25.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.88, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.32.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.13. Synchrony Financial had a net margin of 15.80% and a return on equity of 23.41%. The business had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Synchrony Financial has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.100-9.500 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Synchrony Financial will post 9.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 5th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 5th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 12.41%.

Synchrony Financial announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 21st that permits the company to buyback $0.00 in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on SYF. BTIG Research cut Synchrony Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Synchrony Financial from $84.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Loop Capital started coverage on Synchrony Financial in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $81.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price target on Synchrony Financial from $71.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Synchrony Financial from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.47.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 51,258 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total value of $3,651,107.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 132,664 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,449,656.72. This represents a 27.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.