Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Stock Holdings Boosted by Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 9.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 3,249 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 293 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $563,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 91.2% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 200,795 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,784,000 after acquiring an additional 95,755 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 28,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,885,000 after purchasing an additional 1,545 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 18.9% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Andra AP fonden lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 34.4% in the fourth quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 116,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $20,251,000 after purchasing an additional 29,900 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth about $230,000. Institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $233.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Discover Financial Services currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $191.91.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DFS opened at $163.71 on Thursday. Discover Financial Services has a twelve month low of $119.31 and a twelve month high of $205.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $41.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.26, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $188.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $167.66.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its 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 net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 26.18%. As a group, analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is 17.54%.

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.