Quent Capital LLC Acquires 326 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Quent Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 28.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,472 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $255,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of DFS. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. raised its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 506.5% in 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 in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 78.1% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 27.4% in the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on DFS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group raised Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective 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. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $186.46.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of DFS opened at $188.34 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $47.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.46. Discover Financial Services has a 12 month low of $107.10 and a 12 month high of $205.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $183.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $159.97.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 26.18% and a net margin of 17.29%. Research analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.54%.

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.