Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 51,396 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 53.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,097 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 51,396 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $6,643,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 506.5% in the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 188 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd increased its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 147.8% in the second quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 223 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 72.5% during the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 348.2% during the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 251 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DFS has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $149.57.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DFS traded up $1.35 during trading on Monday, hitting $174.51. The company had a trading volume of 943,276 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,658,811. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $167.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $145.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.08. Discover Financial Services has a 12 month low of $96.46 and a 12 month high of $188.26.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.36 billion. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 13.78% and a return on equity of 21.38%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.59 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.