DRW Securities LLC Lowers Stock Position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

DRW Securities LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 1.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 12,370 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 222 shares during the period. DRW Securities LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $1,735,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services during the third quarter worth $587,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 27.4% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 34,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,896,000 after purchasing an additional 7,505 shares in the last quarter. Round Hill Asset Management grew its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Round Hill Asset Management now owns 24,018 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,369,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 53.8% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 7.7% in the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $233,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DFS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Discover Financial Services currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $138.81.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Discover Financial Services stock opened at $179.29 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $45.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.41. Discover Financial Services has a 12-month low of $85.19 and a 12-month high of $188.26. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $152.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $137.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.41. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 21.38% and a net margin of 13.78%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.36 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.59 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.60%.

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.