Choate Investment Advisors Raises Stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Choate Investment Advisors lifted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 4.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,644 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 231 shares during the quarter. Choate Investment Advisors’ holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $978,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Hemington Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 9,248 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,602,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 6,158 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,067,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Invst LLC increased its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Invst LLC now owns 7,253 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,018,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. now owns 2,047 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $287,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE:DFS opened at $164.67 on Monday. Discover Financial Services has a twelve month low of $119.31 and a twelve month high of $205.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a 50-day moving average of $187.69 and a 200-day moving average of $168.29. The firm has a market cap of $41.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45.

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 the consensus estimate 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 forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on DFS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group raised shares of Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $150.00 to $239.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $233.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.