Fidelis Capital Partners LLC Purchases 2,281 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Fidelis Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 36.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,549 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,281 shares during the quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $1,055,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp increased its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 24.4% in the second quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Discover Financial Services by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 9,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,195,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its position in Discover Financial Services by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,888 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Optas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 4.3% during the second quarter. Optas LLC now owns 2,147 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $281,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Conning Inc. boosted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 4.1% in the second quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 2,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE DFS opened at $142.49 on Monday. Discover Financial Services has a 52-week low of $79.04 and a 52-week high of $147.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.12. The business has a fifty day moving average of $134.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $128.69. The stock has a market cap of $35.73 billion, a PE ratio of 16.25, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.42.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $3.00. The firm had revenue of $4.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.18 billion. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.92%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.54 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 12.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased 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. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Discover Financial Services currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $132.94.

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.