ExodusPoint Capital Management LP Raises Holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

ExodusPoint Capital Management LP raised its position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 871.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 240,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 215,784 shares during the period. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $41,669,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the third quarter worth about $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 78.1% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $262.00 to $219.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $192.40.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE:DFS opened at $175.81 on Thursday. Discover Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $119.31 and a fifty-two week high of $205.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.09. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $183.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $170.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.02, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 26.18% and a net margin of 17.29%. Equities research analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.54%.

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.