Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC Sells 418 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 31,179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 418 shares during the quarter. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $5,401,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of DFS. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 17,986 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,353,000 after acquiring an additional 797 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 58.8% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 92,474 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,096,000 after buying an additional 34,226 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 4.5% in the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 52,855 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,914,000 after buying an additional 2,296 shares in the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the second quarter valued at about $415,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 73.7% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,958 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 831 shares in the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE:DFS opened at $197.98 on Thursday. Discover Financial Services has a 52-week low of $99.07 and a 52-week high of $198.97. The business’s fifty day moving average is $177.30 and its 200 day moving average is $153.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market cap of $49.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.98, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.46.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted its earnings results 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 return on equity of 22.08% and a net margin of 13.78%. Research analysts predict that Discover Financial Services will post 14.15 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.41%. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 22.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on DFS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Discover Financial Services from $150.00 to $146.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group upgraded Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com upgraded Discover Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.71.

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.