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

Research analysts at StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) in a research note issued on Tuesday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

DFS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Discover Financial Services currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $132.94.

Discover Financial Services Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE DFS opened at $136.11 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $134.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.31. 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 has a 12-month low of $79.04 and a 12-month high of $147.61. The company has a market cap of $34.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.42.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $4.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.18 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 20.92% and a net margin of 12.88%. The company’s revenue was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.54 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 12.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Discover Financial Services

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 135.1% during the 1st quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,022,000 after purchasing an additional 4,478 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 238.7% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 14,783 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,662,000 after buying an additional 10,418 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. grew its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 57.6% in the 4th quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 25,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,855,000 after buying an additional 9,287 shares in the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $983,000. Finally, Brave Warrior Advisors LLC increased its position in Discover Financial Services by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC now owns 2,633,167 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $295,968,000 after acquiring an additional 251,909 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

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; 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.