National Bank of Canada FI Decreases Stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

National Bank of Canada FI reduced its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 388,927 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 19,944 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned approximately 0.15% of Discover Financial Services worth $54,563,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 506.5% during the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 188 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its position in Discover Financial Services by 147.8% in the second quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 223 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 72.5% in the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. 86.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of Discover Financial Services stock traded up $1.92 on Friday, reaching $179.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,450,097 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,647,613. 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 company has a market capitalization of $45.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.46, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $160.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $141.75. Discover Financial Services has a 52-week low of $96.46 and a 52-week high of $188.26.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.59 EPS. Analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.34 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. Discover Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on DFS. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Discover Financial Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $140.33.

About Discover Financial Services

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.