WBI Investments LLC Invests $240,000 in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

WBI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 1,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $240,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DFS. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 3.1% in the first quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,888 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Team Hewins LLC grew its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Team Hewins LLC now owns 1,887 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $247,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 3,121 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $351,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 0.8% in the first quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,885,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simon Quick Advisors LLC raised its position in Discover Financial Services by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 6,397 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $719,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on DFS. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $120.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Sunday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Discover Financial Services currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $129.78.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

NYSE:DFS traded up $1.68 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $130.88. 373,964 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,838,744. Discover Financial Services has a 12 month low of $79.04 and a 12 month high of $133.78. The stock has a market cap of $32.82 billion, a PE ratio of 14.83, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The company has a fifty day moving average of $125.43 and a 200 day moving average of $120.05.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($1.88). The firm had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.07 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 17.07% and a net margin of 10.56%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.58 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 11.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.14%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.