Pitcairn Co. Trims Stock Holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Pitcairn Co. lowered its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 9.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,881 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 809 shares during the period. Pitcairn Co.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $1,033,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Partnership Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in Discover Financial Services during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 76.7% during the 1st quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 311 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Barclays increased their price target on Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Discover Financial Services from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $131.33.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of DFS stock traded up $1.36 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $141.62. 1,323,664 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,832,072. Discover Financial Services has a twelve month low of $79.04 and a twelve month high of $147.61. The firm has a market cap of $35.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.44. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $128.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $121.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $3.00. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 20.53% and a net margin of 12.88%. The company had revenue of $4.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.18 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.54 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 12.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.93%.

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; 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.