Schubert & Co Makes New Investment in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Schubert & Co acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 3,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $499,000. Discover Financial Services comprises about 0.4% of Schubert & Co’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Inlet Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 2.4% in the third quarter. Inlet Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $447,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp grew its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 24.4% during the second quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its position in Discover Financial Services by 37.1% during the third quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Discover Financial Services by 0.9% in the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 9,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,195,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 3.1% in the first quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,888 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $379,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of DFS traded down $1.78 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $148.68. 1,244,405 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,627,463. Discover Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $79.04 and a fifty-two week high of $152.90. The business has a 50-day moving average of $137.08 and a 200-day moving average of $131.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.36 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 20.92% and a net margin of 12.88%. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.59 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.15 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Discover Financial Services currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $136.12.

Discover Financial Services Company Profile

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; 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.