LSV Asset Management Cuts Stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

LSV Asset Management decreased its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,484,057 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 95,922 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management owned approximately 0.59% of Discover Financial Services worth $257,083,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Bfsg LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 78.1% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com cut Discover Financial Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group upgraded shares of Discover Financial Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $169.00 to $129.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Discover Financial Services currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $188.40.

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Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of DFS traded up $2.28 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $161.35. The company had a trading volume of 280,587 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,574,491. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Discover Financial Services has a 12-month low of $119.31 and a 12-month high of $205.76. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $174.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $172.23. The company has a market capitalization of $40.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.11, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.20.

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

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services's payout ratio is currently 17.54%.

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.