Vanguard Group Inc. Acquires 290,937 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 31,045,208 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 290,937 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 12.35% of Discover Financial Services worth $5,377,961,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,489,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 10.5% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 115,487 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $16,202,000 after acquiring an additional 10,946 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $282,000. Meyer Handelman Co. bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $239,000. Finally, Mechanics Bank Trust Department acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth $234,000. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

DFS stock traded down $0.27 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $169.86. 1,534,139 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,412,159. The stock has a market cap of $42.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45. Discover Financial Services has a one year low of $119.31 and a one year 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 company has a 50 day simple moving average of $186.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.36.

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Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 26.18% and a net margin of 17.29%. Equities analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. Discover Financial Services's payout ratio is 17.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on DFS shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Discover Financial Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $262.00 to $219.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $192.40.

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.