M&G Plc Acquires 27,017 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

M&G PLC raised its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 515,749 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 27,017 shares during the period. M&G PLC owned approximately 0.21% of Discover Financial Services worth $72,205,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. increased its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 506.5% during the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 188 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 147.8% during the 2nd quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 223 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its position 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 worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 348.2% in the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 251 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on DFS. StockNews.com lowered shares of Discover Financial Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective 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, Evercore ISI raised their target price on Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $138.81.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Discover Financial Services stock traded down $7.55 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $175.00. 3,350,572 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,669,714. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $82.15 and a 1-year high of $188.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The business has a fifty day moving average of $142.21 and a 200 day moving average of $133.60. The company has a market capitalization of $43.94 billion, a PE ratio of 14.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.41.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during 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 posted $2.59 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services's payout ratio is currently 22.60%.

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.