Legal & General Group Plc Has $280.59 Million Position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Legal & General Group Plc reduced its position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 21.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,619,727 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 435,516 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.64% of Discover Financial Services worth $280,585,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,489,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position 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 worth $16,202,000 after buying an additional 10,946 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at $282,000. Meyer Handelman Co. bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth about $239,000. Finally, Mechanics Bank Trust Department bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $234,000. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Discover Financial Services stock traded up $2.12 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $159.16. 237,289 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,576,850. Discover Financial Services has a 12 month low of $119.31 and a 12 month high of $205.76. The firm has a market cap of $40.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.97, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.20. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $175.40 and a 200 day moving average of $172.09.

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Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

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 dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on DFS. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group upgraded Discover Financial Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Discover Financial Services from $169.00 to $129.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $262.00 to $219.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective 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. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $188.40.

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.