Signaturefd LLC Purchases 152 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $1,292,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth about $38,489,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 10.5% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 115,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,202,000 after acquiring an additional 10,946 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth about $282,000. Meyer Handelman Co. bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth about $239,000. Finally, Mechanics Bank Trust Department bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth about $234,000. Institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DFS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group raised shares of Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $150.00 to $239.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price 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, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $191.91.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE:DFS opened at $158.91 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $39.98 billion, a PE ratio of 9.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $186.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $168.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.09. Discover Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $119.31 and a fifty-two week high of $205.76.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its 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 26.18%. Research analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.54%.

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.