O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Sells 112,723 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 69.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 48,667 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 112,723 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $8,431,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of Discover Financial Services stock opened at $170.90 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $43.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.71, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $119.31 and a 1 year high of $205.76. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $184.07 and its 200 day moving average is $170.62.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 EPS 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on DFS. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group raised Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $262.00 to $219.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Discover Financial Services presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $192.40.

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.