Signet Financial Management LLC Increases Position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Signet Financial Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,267 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 636 shares during the period. Signet Financial Management LLC’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $3,290,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 282.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the period. Finally, Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $127.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $140.00 target price (up from $117.00) on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. HSBC increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $107.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.22.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

DFS traded down $1.88 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $119.43. 572,369 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,259,474. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.93 billion, a PE ratio of 10.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.45. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $120.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $105.19. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $79.04 and a 1-year high of $131.65.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.96). The business had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.10 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 22.24% and a net margin of 14.30%. The business’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.77 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 11.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 22nd were given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 21st. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.89%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO John Greene sold 35,191 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.51, for a total value of $3,748,193.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 18,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,980,233.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

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.