Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd Makes New $587,000 Investment in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 4,184 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $587,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DFS. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 27.4% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 34,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,896,000 after purchasing an additional 7,505 shares during the last quarter. Round Hill Asset Management raised its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Round Hill Asset Management now owns 24,018 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,369,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 53.8% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $233,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Camden National Bank purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $277,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on DFS. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price 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. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $138.81.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Discover Financial Services stock opened at $182.56 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $155.86 and a 200-day moving average of $139.27. Discover Financial Services has a 52-week low of $85.37 and a 52-week high of $188.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.73, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.41.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.41. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 21.38% and a net margin of 13.78%. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.36 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.59 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Discover Financial Services will post 13.34 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.60%.

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.