Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Sold by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp cut its position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 31.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 31,415 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 14,550 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $5,442,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in Discover Financial Services by 78.1% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 27.4% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Trading Up 0.5 %

Discover Financial Services stock opened at $196.96 on Wednesday. Discover Financial Services has a 12-month low of $118.74 and a 12-month high of $205.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.50 billion, a PE ratio of 12.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.46. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $185.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $161.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is presently 17.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DFS has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com cut Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $233.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective 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, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Discover Financial Services presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.46.

Discover Financial Services Company 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; 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.