Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS Boosts Stock Holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 102,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,635 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $17,747,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in DFS. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth about $38,489,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 10.5% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 115,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,202,000 after acquiring an additional 10,946 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $282,000. Meyer Handelman Co. bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth $239,000. Finally, Mechanics Bank Trust Department purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth $234,000. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE DFS opened at $164.41 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $186.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $168.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $119.31 and a 1 year high of $205.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.37 billion, a PE ratio of 10.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 26.18% and a net margin of 17.29%. Analysts predict that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on DFS. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $233.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Discover Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $150.00 to $239.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Discover Financial Services presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $191.91.

About Discover Financial Services

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.