StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $132.94.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of DFS opened at $144.89 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $36.34 billion, a PE ratio of 16.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.41. Discover Financial Services has a 52-week low of $79.04 and a 52-week high of $147.61. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $134.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $129.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.06 by $3.00. The company had revenue of $4.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.18 billion. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.92%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.54 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Discover Financial Services will post 12.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.93%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.93%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Discover Financial Services

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DFS. NEOS Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 19.2% in the 4th quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 3,550 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $399,000 after buying an additional 571 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $232,000. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 100,103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,252,000 after purchasing an additional 3,041 shares during the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $335,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 147.8% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 34,589 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,888,000 after purchasing an additional 20,629 shares during the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Discover Financial Services

Discover Financial Services, through its subsidiaries, provides digital banking products and services, and payment services in the United States. It operates in two segments, Digital Banking and Payment Services. The Digital Banking segment offers Discover-branded credit cards to individuals; private student loans, personal loans, home loans, and other consumer lending; and direct-to-consumer deposit products comprising savings accounts, certificates of deposit, money market accounts, IRA certificates of deposit, IRA savings accounts and checking accounts, and sweep accounts.