Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Holdings Boosted by Global Retirement Partners LLC

Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 10.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 912 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $1,347,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,281,950 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $167,692,000 after acquiring an additional 62,595 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 6.7% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,181,333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $154,064,000 after purchasing an additional 73,902 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its position in Discover Financial Services by 0.5% during the second quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,162,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $152,066,000 after purchasing an additional 6,042 shares in the last quarter. Elser Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $91,044,000. Finally, Samlyn Capital LLC lifted its position in Discover Financial Services by 368.0% in the 2nd quarter. Samlyn Capital LLC now owns 646,691 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $84,594,000 after buying an additional 508,504 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Trading Down 1.2 %

DFS opened at $148.69 on Friday. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $79.04 and a 1-year high of $152.90. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $137.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $131.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.29 billion, a PE ratio of 16.95, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.36 billion. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.92%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.59 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.88%. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is 31.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DFS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $136.12.

About Discover Financial Services

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.