Forsta AP Fonden Sells 5,300 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Forsta AP Fonden lowered its position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 8.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 59,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,300 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $7,770,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake 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 buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on DFS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Monday, September 9th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $132.94.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

DFS opened at $131.33 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.12. Discover Financial Services has a 52-week low of $79.04 and a 52-week high of $147.61. The firm has a market cap of $32.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.42. The business’s fifty day moving average is $133.92 and its 200-day moving average is $127.97.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $3.00. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.92%. The business had revenue of $4.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.54 earnings per share. Discover Financial Services’s revenue was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 12.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 22nd were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is 31.93%.

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; private student loans, 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.