V Square Quantitative Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

V Square Quantitative Management LLC cut its stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 8.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,574 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 429 shares during the quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $792,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DFS. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the third quarter worth about $863,000. Creative Planning increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 64,476 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,045,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 9,603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,347,000 after purchasing an additional 912 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 6,429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $902,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 40.0% during the 3rd quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 2,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $393,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Stock Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE DFS opened at $196.14 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $184.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $160.38. The company has a market capitalization of $49.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $109.50 and a 1 year high of $205.76.

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

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Truist Financial raised their price target on Discover Financial Services from $233.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com cut Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Discover Financial Services has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $186.46.

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.