Financial services provider Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) has been in the news recently, with a lowering of holdings by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP and insider trading activity. However, despite these fluctuations in share value, Synchrony Financial remains focused on driving value for shareholders through measures such as a $1 billion share buyback plan.
According to the most recent disclosure filed with the SEC, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lowered its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 2.1% during Q4 2022. The firm owned 7,051,203 shares on SYF stock after selling off 151,755 shares over the period. Despite this shift, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP still owns approximately 1.57% of Synchrony Financial with an estimated worth of $231,691,000.
Synchrony Financial also recently reported its quarterly earnings for Q1 FY23 showing missed expectations at $1.35 EPS compared to a consensus estimate of $1.37 EPS. However, it did report revenue of $4.79 billion against estimates of just over $4 billion while maintaining a return on equity rate of 21.68%.
Insider trading activity included Alberto Casellas’s sale of 39,460 shares at an average price point of $36.14 and Bart Schaller’s sale of 11,071 shares at an average price point of $36.25.
But that’s not all- despite any fluctuations in stock value or insider trading activity- Synchrony Financial is pressing forward with plans to drive shareholder value through its recent announcement of a share buyback plan worth up to $1 billion for up to 8% of its outstanding shares.
Overall, it seems that Synchrony Financial is pushing ahead with aggressive measures to maximize its returns and drive growth for its shareholders even amidst uncertain market conditions and regulatory scrutiny faced by many financial services companies today.
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Institutional Investors Show Optimism in Synchrony Financial
In recent news, hedge funds and institutional investors have been actively buying and selling shares of Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF). TCI Wealth Advisors Inc., for instance, has lifted its position in the financial services provider’s stock by 41.9% during this fourth quarter. It now owns 935 shares of SYF worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd also increased its position in Synchrony Financial by 138.8% during this year’s first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A and Parkside Financial Bank & Trust are among other companies that have shown an upward trend in holdings of SYF, with a purchase of 1,226 and 1,325 shares respectively.
Synchrony Financial opened at $27.97 on May 16, with a fifty-day moving average of $29.17 and a two-hundred-day moving average of $33.05. The company possesses a market capitalization of $11.99 billion, PE ratio of 4.92, beta of 1.58 and price-to-earnings-growth ratio rate at 1.29 as per the latest available data as well.
Despite some negatives from pundits due to decreased earning rates in the past couple of years for SYF clients, the company still seems to be supporting substantial dividend yields for its shareholders.The business has recently declared a quarterly dividend which was paid on Friday May 12th representing an annualized payout ratio (DPR)of around $0.92 per share which gives us good insights into their performance metrics in comparison to industry-average DPRs; one that stands at appx ~16%.
In conclusion, institutional investors sentiment toward this stock is clearly optimistic despite widespread fluctuations within SVF related businesses over time.So if you are new to investing or looking to invest more money – consider taking up their example and carefully monitor Synchrony Financial’s updates on the new steps they might be thinking of to strengthen their future positioning.