Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Purchased by Two Sigma Advisers LP

Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 16.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 160,200 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 22,200 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned about 0.06% of Discover Financial Services worth $22,474,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of DFS. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the second quarter worth about $26,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 506.5% in 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 grew its holdings 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 worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 72.5% in 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, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DFS traded up $1.92 during midday trading 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 stock has a fifty day moving average of $160.69 and a 200 day moving average of $141.63. Discover Financial Services has a twelve month low of $96.46 and a twelve month high of $188.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.00 billion, a PE ratio of 14.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $5.91 billion for 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 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date was 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.