Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Sold by Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. cut its stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 14.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,569 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,413 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $1,202,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Invst LLC grew its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.9% during the third quarter. Invst LLC now owns 7,253 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,018,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. boosted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. now owns 2,047 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $287,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Discover Financial Services by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,501 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,034,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 27.4% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Finally, Inlet Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 2.4% in the third quarter. Inlet Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $447,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DFS opened at $175.64 on Friday. Discover Financial Services has a 52-week low of $96.46 and a 52-week high of $188.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.18, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $163.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.75.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.41. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 21.38% and a net margin of 13.78%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.36 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.59 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st were given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on DFS shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Discover Financial Services from $170.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $146.13.

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.