Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Short Interest Update

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,270,000 shares, a growth of 13.0% from the October 15th total of 3,780,000 shares. Approximately 1.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,450,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days.

Discover Financial Services Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE DFS traded down $1.48 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $174.59. 181,595 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,680,875. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $147.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $136.07. The stock has a market cap of $43.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.21, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.41. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $85.19 and a 1-year high of $188.26.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.36 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 21.38% and a net margin of 13.78%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.59 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 22.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $148.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com cut Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $138.81.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Discover Financial Services

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,498,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,472,771,000 after purchasing an additional 80,601 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,493,862 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,051,314,000 after buying an additional 558,227 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.7% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,834,705 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $257,391,000 after acquiring an additional 12,255 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 0.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,728,276 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $242,460,000 after acquiring an additional 7,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP boosted its position in Discover Financial Services by 5.1% in the second quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,281,950 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $167,692,000 after purchasing an additional 62,595 shares during the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Discover Financial Services

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.