Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Bought by Sanctuary Advisors LLC

Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 19.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 46,475 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,585 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $6,520,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Discover Financial Services by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 25,989 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,400,000 after buying an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 111.9% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 572 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services during the second quarter worth about $380,000. Elser Financial Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the second quarter valued at about $91,044,000. Finally, KG&L Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 23.7% in the 2nd quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC now owns 2,737 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $358,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on DFS shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Discover Financial Services presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $149.57.

Discover Financial Services Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE DFS opened at $176.00 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $164.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $143.50. The company has a market capitalization of $44.19 billion, a PE ratio of 14.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.45. Discover Financial Services has a 12-month low of $96.46 and a 12-month high of $188.26. 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 earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.41. The firm 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 quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.59 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.60%.

About Discover Financial Services

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.