Haverford Trust Co Buys 586 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Haverford Trust Co boosted its stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 25.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,910 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the quarter. Haverford Trust Co’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $408,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. increased its stake in Discover Financial Services by 506.5% in the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 147.8% in the second quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 72.5% during the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 348.2% in the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE DFS opened at $173.76 on Friday. Discover Financial Services has a 12 month low of $84.00 and a 12 month high of $188.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $146.12 and a 200-day moving average of $135.31. The company has a market cap of $43.63 billion, a PE ratio of 14.02, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.41.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.36 billion. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 13.78% and a return on equity of 21.38%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.59 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is 22.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Evercore ISI increased their target price 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. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $138.81.

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.