Sovereign Investment Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 1,435 Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Sovereign Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 1,435 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $249,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position 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 in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of 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 during the period. 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. purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DFS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial lifted their price target 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. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $191.91.

Discover Financial Services Stock Up 3.4 %

NYSE:DFS opened at $164.67 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $41.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.09. Discover Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $119.31 and a fifty-two week high of $205.76. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $187.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $168.06.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.70%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.54%.

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.