Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Has $207,000 Holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lessened its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 92.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,581 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 18,288 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Partnership Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

DFS stock opened at $129.08 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $130.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $123.28. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $79.04 and a 1-year high of $147.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market cap of $32.41 billion, a PE ratio of 14.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.43.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $3.00. The firm had revenue of $4.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.18 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 20.92% and a net margin of 12.88%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.54 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 12.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DFS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Wednesday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $131.33.

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; 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.