Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Stake Raised by abrdn plc

abrdn plc lifted its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 69.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 106,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 43,815 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $12,012,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in DFS. AE Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 10.6% during the third quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,163 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,054,000 after acquiring an additional 1,165 shares during the period. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. grew its position in Discover Financial Services by 37.8% in the third quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. now owns 86,814 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,521,000 after buying an additional 23,825 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its position in Discover Financial Services by 45.3% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 43,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,785,000 after buying an additional 13,623 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in Discover Financial Services by 3.5% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 97,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,417,000 after buying an additional 3,249 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC grew its position in Discover Financial Services by 27.6% in the third quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 3,757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $325,000 after buying an additional 812 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE:DFS opened at $125.68 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $123.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $107.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.45. Discover Financial Services has a 12-month low of $79.04 and a 12-month high of $131.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($1.88). Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 16.74%. The business had revenue of $4.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.58 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 11.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is presently 31.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on DFS shares. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $116.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $111.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $139.00 to $121.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.29.

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; 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.