Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Acquires 611 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 17,826 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 611 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $3,088,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 506.5% in the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 78.1% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 37.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 27.4% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE DFS opened at $201.09 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $181.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $156.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $104.08 and a 1 year high of $205.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.54 billion, a PE ratio of 12.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.46.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 26.18% and a net margin of 17.29%. Analysts predict that Discover Financial Services will post 13.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays upped their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Discover Financial Services from $233.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $182.64.

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; 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.