Hartford Investment Management Co. Lowers Stock Holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Hartford Investment Management Co. reduced its stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,580 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 302 shares during the period. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $2,699,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 78.1% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in 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 period. 86.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com lowered Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $186.46.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Discover Financial Services stock opened at $188.34 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.46. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $183.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $159.97. 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 1 year low of $107.10 and a 1 year high of $205.76.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.54%.

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.