Farther Finance Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 30.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,515 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 593 shares during the quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $436,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 78.1% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Bfsg LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Stock Up 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE DFS opened at $164.67 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $187.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $168.29. Discover Financial Services has a 12 month low of $119.31 and a 12 month high of $205.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.43 billion, a PE ratio of 10.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 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%. Equities analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on DFS shares. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $233.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com cut shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of 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. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $191.91.

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.