Stock fact sheet · data as of
Synchrony Financial (SYF): fair value, margin of safety and Wheel Score
Ticker symbol SYF · Financial Services · Financial - Credit Services · United States · Value
Is SYF undervalued?
SYF has a margin of safety of 78%: the stock closed at 75.03 on 5 Nov 2026 against a GLS average fair value of 340.10. 8 of the 9 valuation models that produced a number sit above the price. Our scans treat a discount this large as a strong starting point for a cash-secured put, not as a verdict - the fair value is a model output, and a wide gap can mean the models are missing something the market knows.
The 9 models disagree widely: DDM gives 18.83 while Payback Time gives 1,029.10. A spread that wide means the average is sensitive to which methods you trust; the model table below shows where each one lands, and the Quote page lets you switch any of them off.
Ranked against every other company we cover, SYF is clearly cheaper than it is fast-growing, so the nightly engine files it under Value (value score 78, growth score 40, out of 100).
Nine valuation models for SYF
Each model turns the latest filed numbers into a value per share; the GLS fair value is the simple average of the ones that produce a positive number. The last two rows are shown for reference and never enter the average. The Quote page lets you switch any model off and add your own margin of safety.
| Model | Value | vs price | What it measures |
|---|---|---|---|
| DCF | 82.59 | +10% | Present value of the projected free cash flows, discounted at the cost of capital |
| Graham Number | 110.44 | +47% | The most a defensive investor pays for the earnings and book value per share |
| Graham Growth | 300.59 | +301% | Graham's growth formula: EPS × (8.5 + 2 × growth), adjusted for bond yields |
| Lynch | 109.30 | +46% | EPS × the earnings growth rate (PEG of 1), growth capped at 25% |
| GLS Growth | 630.15 | +740% | EPS compounded ten years at the blended growth rate, discounted back at 15% a year |
| 10 Cap | 663.82 | +785% | Owner's earnings (operating cash flow less maintenance capex) capitalised at 10% |
| Payback Time | 1,029.10 | +1272% | Eight years of compounded free cash flow: the price at which the business pays for itself |
| DDM | 18.83 | -75% | Dividend discount model: next year's dividend ÷ (10% − 3% growth); needs a dividend |
| EPV | 116.09 | +55% | Earnings power value: current EPS capitalised at 9% with no growth |
| Zombie (liquidation) | -261.26 | -448% | Current assets less all liabilities, per share: the balance-sheet floor. Not in the average |
| Wall St target | 88.79 | +18% | Analysts' average 12-month price target. Not in the average |
Quality and financial health
Financial health is average - SYF passes 5 of the nine Piotroski tests, which falls one point short of the "Piotroski 6 or more" Wheel Trade Filter. The Financials tab on the Quote page shows which tests fail. The GLS Moat score is 8.7 out of 10 - high returns on capital, steady margins and growth that held up through bad years point to a durable business.
Returns on capital are moderate - ROIC 11.1%, ROE 21.2%, ROA 3.0% - with debt at 0.91 times equity and a free-cash-flow yield of 39.1%.
The dividend yield is 1.71% at a payout ratio of 15%; for a wheel trader holding assigned shares the dividend adds to the covered-call premium, and the ex-dividend date is worth knowing before a call is sold.
Institutional ownership scores 10/10, insider activity 2/10 and Congressional trading 10/10 on the GLS smart-money scales.
| Piotroski F-score | 5 / 9 | ROIC | 11.1% |
|---|---|---|---|
| GLS Moat | 8.7 / 10 | ROE | 21.2% |
| Debt / equity | 0.91 | ROA | 3.0% |
| Free-cash-flow yield | 39.1% | Payout ratio | 15% |
| Institutions | 10 / 10 | Insiders · Congress | 2 · 10 / 10 |
Wheel Score 52: Fair
SYF scores 52 out of 100 on the Wheel Score (Fair band, 50-69) because it fails filter 4, financially healthy - Piotroski 5/9 (under 6). A stock must pass all 9 Wheel Trade Filters to reach 70. Otherwise the parts read: value strong, premium strong, moat strong, health fair, red flags fair, option trading good, stability good.
Implied volatility is 33% on the near-the-money contracts 20-60 days out: enough to pass the 25-80% Wheel Trade Filter, but under the 35-60% sweet spot the score rewards most. Chain open interest is 33,163 contracts across all expiries - enough for the wheel at normal size.
Volume runs at 9.2M shares a day on a market cap of $24.4B, with a beta of 1.40 - a high beta, so the stock tends to move more than the market and a strike can be gapped through; the Stability part of the Wheel Score rates that good.
| Filter | Wheel Trade Filter | Result | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Options that actually trade | Passes | Listed options with 1,000+ contracts of open interest and 100+ traded a day |
| 2 | A real business, not a gamble | Passes | Profitable over the last twelve months - not a speculative stock, fund or note |
| 3 | Below fair value | Passes | Trading below the nine-model average fair value (margin of safety above 0) |
| 4 | Financially healthy | Fails | Piotroski 5/9 (under 6) |
| 5 | Can repay its debt | Passes | Long-term debt repaid from 3 years of operating cash flow or less (6 for real estate and utilities; banks and insurers are not judged on it) |
| 6 | No serious red flags | Passes | Red Flags score 60 or more out of 100 (earnings, margins, debt, analysts, filings and price checked the same way for every stock) |
| 7 | A premium worth selling | Passes | Implied volatility 25-80% (enough premium, not a lottery ticket) |
| 8 | Big enough | Passes | Market cap $1 billion or more |
| 9 | Not a penny stock | Passes | Share price $5 or more |
| How it ranks | Rating | From | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Value | Strong | 78% below fair value | |
| Premium | Strong | implied volatility 33% | |
| Moat | Strong | moat 8.7/10 | |
| Health | Fair | Piotroski 5/9 | |
| Red Flags | Fair | Red Flags score 70/100 | |
| Option trading | Good | 2,155 contracts a day, 33,163 open interest | |
| Stability | Good | beta 1.40, $24.4B company |
The Wheel Score ranks ~7,400 US stocks for selling cash-secured puts and covered calls: a stock must pass all 9 Wheel Trade Filters to score 70, and the score then ranks the ones that pass; the Sunday Scan is the top 10. It is updated nightly and is not a recommendation. How the Wheel Score works · the walkthrough lesson shows how it fits into a trade, start to finish.
Upcoming events
The next earnings report is due on 26 Jan 2027, 82 days away - outside the window of a 30-45-day put sold today. The shares go ex-dividend on 5 Nov 2026 (0.3400 per share), so a covered call sold before then carries a small early-assignment risk around that date.
No analyst upgrades or downgrades were recorded in the last 30 days.
Earnings, dividend, IPO, split and economic calendars for the whole market, filterable to your watchlists.
Similar stocks in Financial - Credit Services
The 12 companies below are the closest to Synchrony Financial by market cap within the Financial - Credit Services industry, each with its own fact sheet; the Compare page puts up to eight of them side by side.
| Stock | Close | Fair value | MoS | Wheel | Mkt cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GPN Global Payments Inc. | 96.09 | 65.01 | -48% | 35Weak | $25.4B |
| AFRM Affirm Holdings, Inc. | 75.59 | 173.51 | +56% | 47Weak | $22.6B |
| SOFI SoFi Technologies, Inc. | 17.38 | 19.24 | +10% | 41Weak | $22.5B |
| IX ORIX Corporation | 37.04 | 42.91 | +14% | 33No options | $41.1B |
| KKRS KKR Group Finance Co. IX LLC 4. | 15.36 | 60.27 | +75% | 31No options | $13.6B |
| ALLY Ally Financial Inc. | 39.36 | 70.99 | +45% | 83Good | $12.0B |
| PYPL PayPal Holdings, Inc. | 60.20 | 106.42 | +43% | 88Prime | $50.0B |
| FCFS FirstCash Holdings, Inc | 193.34 | 232.88 | +17% | 77Good | $8.3B |
| LU Lufax Holding Ltd | 8.51 | 43.72 | +81% | 39Weak | $7.4B |
| OMF OneMain Holdings, Inc. | 57.97 | 207.52 | +72% | 82Good | $6.6B |
| SLMBP SLM Corporation | 70.99 | 236.36 | +70% | 38No options | $6.4B |
| KLAR Klarna Group plc | 13.89 | 8.37 | -66% | 31Weak | $5.2B |
⚖ Compare SYF with 7 of them All Financial Services stocks →
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A free GLS Equity account gets you nightly fair value and the Wheel Score on ~7,400 US stocks, a watchlist, the scanner preview and the Sunday Scan - the top 10 stocks that pass all 9 Wheel Trade Filters, emailed every week. Pro adds the full put and call scanners, unlimited watchlists with alerts and the trade journal.
Start free See the Sunday ScanQuestions about SYF
Is SYF undervalued right now?
By the GLS models, yes: at 75.03 the stock is 78% below the average fair value of 340.10 (data as of 5 Nov 2026). Whether the discount is deserved is the question to research next.
What is the Wheel Score of SYF and what does it mean?
SYF scores 52 out of 100 (Fair) - it fails Wheel Trade Filter 4. The Wheel Score ranks stocks for the wheel strategy - selling cash-secured puts, then covered calls if assigned - in two parts: the 9 pass/fail Wheel Trade Filters (busy options, a real business, below fair value, Piotroski 6 or more, debt it can repay, a Red Flags score of 60 or more, implied volatility of 25-80%, a $1 billion company, $5 a share) and a ranking of how strongly a stock passes on value, premium, moat, health, red flags, option trading and stability. A stock that fails any filter stays under 70; 70-84 is Good, 85 and above is Prime. The Sunday Scan is the top 10 that pass, sorted by Wheel Score.
What is the GLS fair value for SYF?
340.10 per share as of 5 Nov 2026 - the simple average of the 9 valuation models (out of nine: DCF, Graham Number, Graham Growth, Lynch, GLS Growth, 10 Cap, Payback Time, DDM and EPV) that produced a positive value. The models run every night on the latest filings; the Quote page lets you switch any of them off and add a margin of safety of your own.
When does Synchrony Financial report earnings next?
The next earnings report is due on 26 Jan 2027, 82 days from the data date of 5 Nov 2026. The Calendars page lists every upcoming report with its time of day.
Does SYF have listed options, and how liquid are they?
Yes. The nightly snapshot found 122 listed contracts with 33,163 open interest across all expiries and implied volatility of 33% on the near-the-money contracts. The Options scanner lists the cash-secured put and covered call set-ups with premium and annualised yield worked out.