Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Announces Earnings Results

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.66 by $0.11, RTT News reports. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 31.90% and a return on equity of 34.94%. The business had revenue of $3.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.64 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 27.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Discover Financial Services Stock Up 4.2 %

DFS opened at $106.14 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $29.00 billion, a PE ratio of 6.91, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.41. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $87.64 and a 1-year high of $129.12. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $103.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $101.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 23rd will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 22nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is presently 15.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DFS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays cut shares of Discover Financial Services from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $115.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $113.00 to $109.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 18th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Monday, November 21st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $116.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $103.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $118.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Michael H. Moskow sold 1,291 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.10, for a total transaction of $135,684.10. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 51,596 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,422,739.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.59% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Discover Financial Services

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. First Western Trust Bank purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services during the first quarter valued at $227,000. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services during the third quarter valued at $199,000. IHT Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services during the third quarter valued at $203,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 995.4% during the first quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 2,388 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $263,000 after acquiring an additional 2,170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fund Management at Engine No. 1 LLC purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services during the first quarter valued at $269,000. 81.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Company Profile

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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.