Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) Upgraded to “Buy” at Compass Point

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) was upgraded by equities researchers at Compass Point from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm presently has a $96.00 price objective on the financial services provider’s stock. Compass Point’s target price points to a potential upside of 31.89% from the company’s current price.

SYF has been the subject of a number of other research reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $91.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. BTIG Research lowered their target price on shares of Synchrony Financial from $100.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $75.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Synchrony Financial from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $87.63.

Synchrony Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:SYF opened at $72.79 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $80.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.66. The stock has a market cap of $26.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.95, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.43. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $40.54 and a 1-year high of $88.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Synchrony Financial announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, October 15th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 3.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Mothner sold 32,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.80, for a total value of $2,329,600.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 127,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,252,880. This trade represents a 20.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Arthur W. Coviello, Jr. sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.93, for a total value of $591,440.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 35,769 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,402.17. The trade was a 18.28% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 55,075 shares of company stock worth $4,036,892. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Synchrony Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Synchrony Financial by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,080,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,355,698,000 after purchasing an additional 191,920 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 5.4% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 14,335,213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,018,517,000 after buying an additional 739,832 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,307,077 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $354,194,000 after acquiring an additional 406,796 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,134,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $431,999,000 after acquiring an additional 592,567 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Synchrony Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $299,360,000. 96.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Synchrony Financial News

Here are the key news stories impacting Synchrony Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings modestly beat expectations as efficiency improved and credit loss provisions declined, supporting EPS outperformance. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Purchase volume hit a company record ($49B for 2025) and management said BNPL expansion lifted sales without hurting core card business — a growth signal for future fee and interchange revenue. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: TD Cowen maintained a Buy rating and $95 price target, citing compelling upside into 2027 despite near-term headwinds. That provides a potential catalyst if execution improves. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Company declared a quarterly common dividend of $0.30 per share (ex-dividend Feb 6), supporting income investors. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Full Q4 earnings call transcript and slides are available for investors who want line-by-line management commentary on product expansion, RSA costs and reserve assumptions. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Management released monthly credit performance metrics (December), which investors should monitor for trends in charge-offs and delinquencies. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Profit was dented by a restructuring charge and higher operating costs, which reduced headline earnings and heightened near-term expense risk. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue came in flat/softer and the company updated FY‑2026 guidance that implies limited EPS upside (management’s 2026 outlook expects headwinds from higher provisions, RSA costs and narrower margin levers). Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Political/regulatory risk remains—proposed credit-card rate caps, while unlikely to be implemented soon, would materially hurt Synchrony’s card-based business model if enacted. Article Title

Synchrony Financial Company Profile

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.