Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Receives $132.94 Consensus PT from Analysts

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $132.94.

Several research analysts have weighed in on DFS shares. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research report on Sunday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Discover Financial Services

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Boston Partners raised its stake in Discover Financial Services by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 9,072,829 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,017,046,000 after purchasing an additional 475,579 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,655,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $410,891,000 after acquiring an additional 217,475 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at $322,199,000. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC now owns 2,633,167 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $295,968,000 after acquiring an additional 251,909 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 60.9% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,122,824 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $238,605,000 after acquiring an additional 803,738 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of DFS opened at $138.12 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $133.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.45. Discover Financial Services has a twelve month low of $79.04 and a twelve month high of $147.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.75, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.43.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $3.00. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.92%. The company had revenue of $4.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.54 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Discover Financial Services will post 12.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 22nd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.93%.

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; 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.