Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. Grows Stock Holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 352.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $42,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 78.1% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Bfsg LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $219.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on 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. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Discover Financial Services to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $188.91.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of DFS opened at $190.25 on Friday. Discover Financial Services has a twelve month low of $119.95 and a twelve month high of $205.76. The company has a market capitalization of $47.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.20. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $168.82 and a 200 day moving average of $175.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.92. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 26.18% and a net margin of 17.29%. The firm had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.10 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services 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.