Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Purchased by Signaturefd LLC

Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,309 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $1,025,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DFS. Cooke & Bieler LP grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,281,950 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $167,692,000 after acquiring an additional 62,595 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 6.7% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,181,333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $154,064,000 after purchasing an additional 73,902 shares during the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.5% in the second quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,162,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $152,066,000 after purchasing an additional 6,042 shares during the period. Elser Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services in the second quarter valued at $91,044,000. Finally, Samlyn Capital LLC lifted its position in Discover Financial Services by 368.0% during the second quarter. Samlyn Capital LLC now owns 646,691 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $84,594,000 after buying an additional 508,504 shares during the period. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on DFS. StockNews.com started coverage on Discover Financial Services in a report on Saturday, October 19th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $136.12.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of DFS stock opened at $145.16 on Thursday. Discover Financial Services has a twelve month low of $79.04 and a twelve month high of $152.90. The company has a market capitalization of $36.40 billion, a PE ratio of 16.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $138.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $131.46.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.36 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.59 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 31.93%.

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.