Scotia Capital Inc. Sells 9,588 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Scotia Capital Inc. decreased its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 86.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,477 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 9,588 shares during the quarter. Scotia Capital Inc.'s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $256,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Bfsg LLC bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 78.1% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DFS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays raised their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Discover Financial Services from $262.00 to $219.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on 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. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Discover Financial Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $188.40.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE DFS traded up $3.60 on Friday, reaching $159.91. 1,106,264 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,574,445. 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 one year low of $119.95 and a one year high of $205.76. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $171.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $172.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.23 billion, a PE ratio of 10.02, 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 for the quarter, beating 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%. Analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Discover Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.