SunTrust analyst Andrew Jeffrey lowered his price target on Alliance Data to $270, citing expectations of more limited upside from its Epsilon and LoyaltyOne business units as well as his view of more "back-end" loaded FY18. Despite the price cut, Jeffrey contends that the company's core card services division is better positioned than the competition and justifies a "measurable relative premium", having posted a 70bp decline in charge-offs and improving delinquency figures. Jeffrey keeps his Buy rating on Alliance Data, further noting that while investors are growing less patient with inconsistent results, he still expects earnings to accelerate in the second half of this year.