Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Purchased by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 2.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 685 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $3,742,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings 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 valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its holdings 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 valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 195 shares during the period. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on DFS. Barclays increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $136.53.

Discover Financial Services Trading Up 2.5 %

NYSE:DFS opened at $154.44 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $139.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $132.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.41. 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 1 year low of $81.09 and a 1 year high of $157.06.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.41. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 20.92% and a net margin of 12.88%. The firm 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 business posted $2.59 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.93%.

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.