Gulf International Bank UK Ltd Decreases Stock Holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd lessened its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 4.1% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 20,063 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 868 shares during the quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $2,814,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DFS. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 506.5% in the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares during the period. Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 147.8% in the second quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 72.5% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Discover Financial Services by 348.2% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted 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, October 18th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $138.81.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

DFS opened at $182.55 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.73, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.41. Discover Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $82.15 and a fifty-two week high of $188.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.08. The company has a fifty day moving average of $142.21 and a 200 day moving average of $133.60.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.36 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 21.38% and a net margin of 13.78%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.59 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.60%.

Discover Financial Services 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.