Associated Banc Corp Reduces Stock Position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Associated Banc Corp cut its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 1.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 242,039 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,855 shares during the period. Discover Financial Services comprises approximately 1.0% of Associated Banc Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Associated Banc Corp owned approximately 0.10% of Discover Financial Services worth $33,956,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gabelli Funds LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the first quarter valued at approximately $983,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 61.0% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 62,529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,197,000 after buying an additional 23,702 shares during the period. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,035,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 74.0% in the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 7,976 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 3,391 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in Discover Financial Services by 10.0% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 404,849 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,072,000 after acquiring an additional 36,941 shares during the period. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DFS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $138.81.

Discover Financial Services Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of Discover Financial Services stock traded up $1.93 during trading on Monday, reaching $181.22. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 64,371 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,675,148. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $152.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $137.83. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $85.19 and a 1-year high of $188.26. The company has a market cap of $45.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.36 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 21.38% and a net margin of 13.78%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.59 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.60%.

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.