Bfsg LLC Invests $35,000 in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Bfsg LLC purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $35,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. National Pension Service raised its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 14.8% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 439,756 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,693,000 after acquiring an additional 56,814 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Discover Financial Services by 10.5% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 115,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,202,000 after purchasing an additional 10,946 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at $282,000. Meyer Handelman Co. acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth $239,000. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the third quarter worth $2,415,000. 86.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Discover Financial Services stock opened at $203.34 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $51.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.46. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $186.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $162.17. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $118.74 and a 1 year high of $205.76.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 26.18% and a net margin of 17.29%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on DFS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group raised Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.46.

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; 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.