GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC Reduces Position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC decreased its holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,977 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 88 shares during the period. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $782,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,888 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $379,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Team Hewins LLC grew its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 5.5% in the first quarter. Team Hewins LLC now owns 1,887 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $247,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 3,121 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $351,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,885,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Discover Financial Services by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $292,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Discover Financial Services stock traded up $1.12 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $127.74. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 533,924 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,755,503. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. Discover Financial Services has a 52-week low of $79.04 and a 52-week high of $147.61. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $130.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.65. The company has a market cap of $32.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.57, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.43.

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

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on DFS shares. 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 report on Tuesday, July 9th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Discover Financial Services from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently 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.