Stifel Financial Corp Grows Position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Stifel Financial Corp raised its stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 149,214 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 9,010 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp owned approximately 0.06% of Discover Financial Services worth $20,933,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 104.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 26,976 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,785,000 after buying an additional 13,751 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the third quarter worth $76,000. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its position in Discover Financial Services by 1.6% in the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 102,709 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $14,409,000 after purchasing an additional 1,592 shares during the period. IHT Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 12.5% in the 3rd quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,610 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $364,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 36,738 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,155,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares during the period. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Discover Financial Services Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE DFS traded down $1.01 on Tuesday, hitting $175.75. 848,664 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,659,059. Discover Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $96.46 and a fifty-two week high of $188.26. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $161.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $142.13. 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 cap of $44.13 billion, a PE ratio of 14.21, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.45.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.41. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 13.78% and a return on equity of 21.38%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.36 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.59 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.34 EPS for the current fiscal 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 paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. Discover Financial Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com lowered Discover Financial Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $146.13.

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.