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MCO vs. SYF: Moody's vs. Synchrony Financial Stock Comparison

How do Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF) both fall under the Financial Services industry group, but MCO is classified in Capital Markets while SYF is classified in Consumer Finance.

Company profile comparison for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF)
Profile ItemMCOSYF
NameMoody's CorporationSynchrony Financial
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorFinancialsFinancials
GICS Industry GroupFinancial ServicesFinancial Services
GICS IndustryCapital MarketsConsumer Finance
GICS Sub-IndustryFinancial Exchanges & DataConsumer Finance
Market Capitalization87.19 billion USD23.99 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENYSE
Listing DateOctober 31, 1994July 31, 2014
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

MCO
SYF
GSPC
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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF)
MetricMCOSYF
Total Return (1Y)5.02%2.84%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)15.27%39.02%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)6.21%10.89%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

MCO
SYF
GSPC
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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF)
MetricMCOSYF
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)28.61%31.32%
Beta (5Y)1.281.40
Max Drawdown (5Y)-40.93%-44.60%
Avg. Volume (3M)817.57K3.37M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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MCO and SYF are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF)
MetricMCOSYF
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.03-0.05
Sortino Ratio (1Y)0.04-0.06

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Moody's (MCO) at 76.74% clears its industry range for ROE, a sharper capital-efficiency signal than Synchrony Financial (SYF) at 19.83%, which is closer to a typical peer reading.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

76.74%

MCO
76.74%
Max
44.78%
Q3
21.85%
Median
12.91%
Q1
4.48%
Min
-18.71%

SYF

Financial Services industry group

19.83%

Max
44.78%
Q3
21.85%
SYF
19.83%
Median
12.91%
Q1
4.48%
Min
-18.71%
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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF): A comparison of their ROE against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

For every dollar of sales, both Moody's (MCO) at 35.26% and Synchrony Financial (SYF) at 34.07% retain more as net profit than most peers, landing in the top net margin quartile of their industries.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

35.26%

Max
62.84%
MCO
35.26%
Q3
28.05%
Median
15.36%
Q1
4.82%
Min
-28.52%

SYF

Financial Services industry group

34.07%

Max
62.84%
SYF
34.07%
Q3
28.05%
Median
15.36%
Q1
4.82%
Min
-28.52%
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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF): A comparison of their net margin against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Moody's (MCO) at 46.27% and Synchrony Financial (SYF) at 49.84% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

46.27%

Max
107.33%
Q3
55.90%
MCO
46.27%
Median
30.09%
Q1
14.60%
Min
-44.34%

SYF

Financial Services industry group

49.84%

Max
107.33%
Q3
55.90%
SYF
49.84%
Median
30.09%
Q1
14.60%
Min
-44.34%
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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF): A comparison of their operating margin against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF)
MetricMCOSYF
ROE (TTM)76.74%19.83%
ROA (TTM)15.56%2.78%
Net Margin (TTM)35.26%34.07%
Operating Margin (TTM)46.27%49.84%
Gross Margin (TTM)----

Growth

Revenue Growth

Moody's (MCO) at 8.89% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while Synchrony Financial (SYF) at -0.50% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Moody's (MCO) at 21.40% and Synchrony Financial (SYF) at 8.54% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF)
MetricMCOSYF
Revenue Growth (YoY)8.89%-0.50%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)12.17%8.67%
EPS Growth (YoY)21.40%8.54%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)22.48%14.70%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

current ratio doesn’t apply on either side: Moody's (MCO) in Financial Services and Synchrony Financial (SYF) in Financial Services both report balance sheets without a current/non-current split, so their short-term liquidity is better judged through regulatory and funding measures.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

debt-to-equity ratio is set aside for both: Moody's (MCO) in Financial Services and Synchrony Financial (SYF) in Financial Services run businesses where balance-sheet leverage is part of the model, so capital-adequacy and funding measures are the better gauges of balance-sheet risk.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF)
MetricMCOSYF
Current Ratio (MRQ)----
Debt / Equity (MRQ)----
Net Debt / EBITDA----

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Moody's (MCO) at 0.78% and Synchrony Financial (SYF) at 1.67% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

0.78%

Max
9.77%
Q3
3.92%
Median
1.09%
MCO
0.78%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

SYF

Financial Services industry group

1.67%

Max
9.77%
Q3
3.92%
SYF
1.67%
Median
1.09%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Moody's (MCO) at 24.59% and Synchrony Financial (SYF) at 12.94% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

24.59%

Max
241.07%
Q3
97.36%
Median
25.77%
MCO
24.59%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

SYF

Financial Services industry group

12.94%

Max
241.07%
Q3
97.36%
Median
25.77%
SYF
12.94%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF)
MetricMCOSYF
Dividend Yield (TTM)0.78%1.67%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)24.59%12.94%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Synchrony Financial (SYF) at 7.70 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while Moody's (MCO) at 30.85 sits in the richer quartile — a clear split in what investors pay for each dollar of trailing earnings.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

30.85

Max
45.85
MCO
30.85
Q3
24.64
Median
15.37
Q1
9.68
Min
0.16

SYF

Financial Services industry group

7.70

Max
45.85
Q3
24.64
Median
15.37
Q1
9.68
SYF
7.70
Min
0.16
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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Synchrony Financial (SYF) at 2.45 prices around its industry’s typical P/S ratio, while Moody's (MCO) at 10.66 clears its benchmark range — MCO looks notably rich on sales.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

10.66

MCO
10.66
Max
9.23
Q3
4.57
Median
2.72
Q1
1.28
Min
-0.55

SYF

Financial Services industry group

2.45

Max
9.23
Q3
4.57
Median
2.72
SYF
2.45
Q1
1.28
Min
-0.55
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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Synchrony Financial (SYF) at 1.55 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while Moody's (MCO) at 26.68 prices above its benchmark range — MCO looks rich relative to book.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

26.68

MCO
26.68
Max
7.79
Q3
3.63
Median
1.57
Q1
0.81
Min
-0.39

SYF

Financial Services industry group

1.55

Max
7.79
Q3
3.63
Median
1.57
SYF
1.55
Q1
0.81
Min
-0.39
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Moody's (MCO) vs. Synchrony Financial (SYF): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Synchrony Financial (SYF)
MetricMCOSYF
P/E Ratio (TTM)30.857.70
P/S Ratio (TTM)10.662.45
P/B Ratio (MRQ)26.681.55
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)----