Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Stock Price Down 8.2% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) were down 8.2% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $152.82 and last traded at $150.84. Approximately 1,504,315 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 10% from the average daily volume of 1,369,358 shares. The stock had previously closed at $164.26.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on DFS shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $233.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Discover Financial Services presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $191.91.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $39.80 billion, a PE ratio of 9.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $186.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $168.54.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is 17.54%.

Institutional Trading of Discover Financial Services

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CIBRA Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth $4,855,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 61,023 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,571,000 after acquiring an additional 1,544 shares during the period. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth $22,171,000. Finally, Armis Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth $223,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

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.