Sentry Investment Management LLC Lowers Stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Sentry Investment Management LLC cut its position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 14.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 935 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 152 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $162,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp increased its position in Discover Financial Services by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,498,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,472,771,000 after purchasing an additional 80,601 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 8.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,493,862 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,051,314,000 after buying an additional 558,227 shares during the period. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth approximately $351,766,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.7% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,834,705 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $257,391,000 after acquiring an additional 12,255 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,728,276 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $242,460,000 after acquiring an additional 7,751 shares during the period. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

DFS stock opened at $187.66 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $47.16 billion, a PE ratio of 11.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.46. 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 stock’s 50 day moving average is $187.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $164.38. Discover Financial Services has a 52-week low of $118.74 and a 52-week high of $205.76.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 26.18%. Analysts predict that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on DFS. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com cut Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays increased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group upgraded Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $150.00 to $239.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, 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 report on Friday, January 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Discover Financial Services has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.