Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Purchased by Meeder Advisory Services Inc.

Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 21.6% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 6,959 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,238 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $910,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in DFS. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 147.8% during the 2nd quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its position in Discover Financial Services by 72.5% during the 2nd 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. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 348.2% in the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services in the first quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DFS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Monday, September 9th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $132.94.

Discover Financial Services Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE DFS opened at $131.33 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.97, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $133.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $128.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. Discover Financial Services has a 52-week low of $79.04 and a 52-week high of $147.61.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $3.00. The firm had revenue of $4.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.18 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 20.92% and a net margin of 12.88%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.54 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 12.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd were issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 22nd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.93%.

Discover Financial Services 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; private student loans, 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.