HighTower Advisors LLC Acquires 3,840 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 6.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 60,866 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,840 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC's holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $10,544,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 29,115 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,044,000 after purchasing an additional 2,191 shares in the last quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 38,836 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,728,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its stake in Discover Financial Services by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 4,836 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $838,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth approximately $289,000. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 3,249 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $563,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Discover Financial Services Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE DFS traded up $2.20 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $164.41. The stock had a trading volume of 1,336,593 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,995,006. The company has a market capitalization of $41.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $186.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $168.49. Discover Financial Services has a 52 week low of $119.31 and a 52 week high of $205.76.

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%. Analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 EPS 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. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. Discover Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on DFS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group raised shares of Discover Financial Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. 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 shares of Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an "overweight" 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 company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $191.91.

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.