Diversify Advisory Services LLC Makes New Investment in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 3,466 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $451,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 135.1% during the 1st quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,022,000 after acquiring an additional 4,478 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 238.7% in the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 14,783 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,662,000 after purchasing an additional 10,418 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,073,000. Scotia Capital Inc. raised its stake in Discover Financial Services by 57.6% during the fourth quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 25,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,855,000 after buying an additional 9,287 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brave Warrior Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC now owns 2,633,167 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $295,968,000 after buying an additional 251,909 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DFS traded up $1.29 during trading on Friday, reaching $126.39. The stock had a trading volume of 630,881 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,776,409. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.70 billion, a PE ratio of 14.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.43. Discover Financial Services has a 52 week low of $79.04 and a 52 week high of $147.61. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $130.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $6.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $3.00. The company had revenue of $4.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.18 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 20.92% and a net margin of 12.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.54 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Discover Financial Services will post 12.23 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, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.22%. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is 31.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on Discover Financial Services in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $131.33.

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; 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.