Financial Advocates Investment Management Buys 124 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Financial Advocates Investment Management boosted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 6,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Financial Advocates Investment Management’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $938,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 506.5% during the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd increased its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 147.8% during the 2nd quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 72.5% in the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 348.2% in the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on DFS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research note on Sunday, October 27th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $138.81.

Discover Financial Services Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of Discover Financial Services stock opened at $151.30 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.21, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.41. Discover Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $82.15 and a fifty-two week high of $157.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.08. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $140.58 and a 200 day moving average of $132.71.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.36 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 21.38% and a net margin of 13.78%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.59 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Discover Financial Services will post 13.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is 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.