Birnam Oak Advisors LP Acquires New Position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Birnam Oak Advisors LP acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 122,187 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $21,166,000. Discover Financial Services accounts for 10.3% of Birnam Oak Advisors LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DFS. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Bfsg LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 78.1% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Down 7.1 %

DFS stock opened at $152.59 on Tuesday. Discover Financial Services has a twelve month low of $119.31 and a twelve month high of $205.76. 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 has a market cap of $38.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.56, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $187.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $168.39.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted 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 return on equity of 26.18% and a net margin of 17.29%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on DFS. UBS Group raised Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Barclays increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $191.91.

Discover Financial Services Company 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.