Hilltop Holdings Inc. Has $2.68 Million Stock Holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Hilltop Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 775.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,125 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 16,940 shares during the period. Hilltop Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $2,683,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in DFS. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 8.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,493,862 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,051,314,000 after acquiring an additional 558,227 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,834,705 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $257,391,000 after purchasing an additional 12,255 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 0.5% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,728,276 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $242,460,000 after buying an additional 7,751 shares during the period. Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its position in Discover Financial Services by 5.1% during the second quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,281,950 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $167,692,000 after buying an additional 62,595 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 6.7% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,181,333 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $154,064,000 after buying an additional 73,902 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company's stock.

Discover Financial Services Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of DFS traded down $1.68 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $178.43. The stock had a trading volume of 1,205,115 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,671,312. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $156.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $139.87. The firm has a market cap of $44.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. Discover Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $93.83 and a fifty-two week high of $188.26.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 in the previous year, the company posted $2.59 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.34 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI upped 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 report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Discover Financial Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.81.

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.