Pinnacle Associates Ltd. Reduces Position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lessened its position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 1.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,154 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 414 shares during the quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $3,944,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 72.5% in the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. StockNews.com began coverage on Discover Financial Services in a report on Saturday, August 24th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on Discover Financial Services in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $132.94.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DFS traded up $1.13 during trading on Friday, hitting $138.71. 1,395,071 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,711,794. Discover Financial Services has a one year low of $79.04 and a one year high of $147.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.82, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.43. The business’s fifty day moving average is $133.27 and its 200-day moving average is $126.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.06 by $3.00. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 20.92% and a net margin of 12.88%. The business had revenue of $4.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.54 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Discover Financial Services will post 12.23 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 Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 22nd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.