MetLife Investment Management LLC Buys 1,168 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 66,433 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,168 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $11,508,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in DFS. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Bfsg LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Trading Up 2.3 %

Discover Financial Services stock opened at $159.91 on Monday. Discover Financial Services has a 52 week low of $119.95 and a 52 week high of $205.76. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $171.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $172.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $40.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.20.

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

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DFS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $169.00 to $129.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $150.00 to $239.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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 report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $262.00 to $219.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $188.40.

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.