Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Acquired by Schechter Investment Advisors LLC

Schechter Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 108.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,725 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,538 shares during the quarter. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $981,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DFS. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its stake in Discover Financial Services by 282.0% during the third quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 282 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on DFS. Morgan Stanley upgraded Discover Financial Services from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $105.00 to $133.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Discover Financial Services from $117.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $111.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 19th. Seaport Res Ptn lowered Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Discover Financial Services from $139.00 to $121.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 19th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $121.83.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO John Greene sold 35,191 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.51, for a total transaction of $3,748,193.41. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 18,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,980,233.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DFS opened at $128.00 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $114.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $101.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $32.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.38, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.45. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $79.04 and a 1 year high of $128.03.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.96). Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 22.24%. The firm had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.77 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 11.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 22nd were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 21st. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.89%.

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; private student loans, 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.