Certuity LLC Purchases Shares of 1,450 Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Certuity LLC bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,450 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $251,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in DFS. Quent Capital LLC increased its position in Discover Financial Services by 28.4% in the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,472 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $255,000 after acquiring an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Equitec Proprietary Markets LLC bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $173,000. NORTHSTAR ASSET MANAGEMENT Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 32.3% during the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 10,174 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,762,000 after buying an additional 2,484 shares in the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Up 3.2 %

Shares of DFS stock traded up $6.03 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $196.14. 1,238,124 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,519,959. Discover Financial Services has a 52 week low of $109.50 and a 52 week 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 has a 50 day moving average of $184.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $160.98. The company has a market capitalization of $49.29 billion, a PE ratio of 12.29, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.46.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last released its 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%. Analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 17.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on DFS shares. Barclays lifted their target price on Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut Discover Financial Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of 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 lifted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $233.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $186.46.

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.