Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Research Coverage Started at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) in a report issued on Saturday morning. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Barclays raised their price target on Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $136.12.

Discover Financial Services Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE DFS opened at $145.45 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $36.48 billion, a PE ratio of 16.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.41. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $79.04 and a 1-year high of $152.90. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $137.91 and a 200-day moving average of $131.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.41. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.92%. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.59 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.15 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.93%. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is presently 31.93%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 72.5% during 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 purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 348.2% in the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.