Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Sold by O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 69.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 48,667 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 112,723 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC's holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $8,431,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its position in Discover Financial Services by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 23,855 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,195,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its stake in Discover Financial Services by 42.0% in the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 697,169 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $120,771,000 after purchasing an additional 206,348 shares in the last quarter. Allstate Corp acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth $1,281,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its position in Discover Financial Services by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,411 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $244,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 145,325 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,175,000 after purchasing an additional 15,574 shares during the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Remove Ads

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group upgraded shares of Discover Financial Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $150.00 to $239.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $262.00 to $219.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Discover Financial Services has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $192.40.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DFS traded down $14.79 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $161.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,114,280 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,542,196. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $183.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $170.92. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $119.31 and a 1-year high of $205.76. The firm has a market cap of $40.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 26.18%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.