Lee Danner & Bass Inc. Makes New $210,000 Investment in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $210,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 282.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. 86.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of DFS stock opened at $126.69 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $31.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.45. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $122.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $106.44. Discover Financial Services has a 12-month low of $79.04 and a 12-month high of $131.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($1.88). Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 16.74%. The firm had revenue of $4.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.58 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 11.34 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 31.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on DFS. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Discover Financial Services from $127.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Discover Financial Services from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Discover Financial Services from $127.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $139.00 to $121.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $116.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Discover Financial Services currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $126.29.

Insider Activity at Discover Financial Services

In related news, CFO John Greene sold 35,191 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.51, for a total value of $3,748,193.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,980,233.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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; private student loans, 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.