First Bancorp Inc ME Invests $234,000 in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

First Bancorp Inc ME bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $234,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 506.5% during the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its stake in Discover Financial Services by 78.1% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its stake in Discover Financial Services by 37.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 27.4% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE:DFS opened at $201.59 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.63, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.46. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $178.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $154.51. Discover Financial Services has a 12 month low of $101.71 and a 12 month high of $204.93.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 27.52%. Analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 12.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is 17.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on DFS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $233.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday. Ten 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, Discover Financial Services currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $180.57.

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.