Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Purchased by UniSuper Management Pty Ltd

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 311.3% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 10,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,228 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $1,425,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp increased its stake in Discover Financial Services by 76.7% in the first quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 311 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on DFS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays lifted their target price on Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. BTIG Research began coverage on Discover Financial Services in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. StockNews.com began coverage on Discover Financial Services in a report on Tuesday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $131.33.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

NYSE:DFS traded down $0.22 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $139.60. 1,377,578 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,837,538. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.07. The company has a market cap of $35.01 billion, a PE ratio of 15.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.44. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $128.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $121.81. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $79.04 and a 1 year high of $147.61.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.06 by $3.00. The business had revenue of $4.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.18 billion. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.53%. The company’s revenue was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.54 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 11.77 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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.