Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Sells 7,427 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund reduced its stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 12.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,954 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,427 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $5,952,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its position in Discover Financial Services by 282.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 105.8% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 465 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

Discover Financial Services stock opened at $129.30 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.74, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.45. Discover Financial Services has a one year low of $79.04 and a one year high of $131.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $122.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $106.72.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($1.88). The company had revenue of $4.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.07 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 10.56%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.58 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 11.3 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DFS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $140.00 price target (up from $117.00) on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Discover Financial Services from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Piper Sandler lifted 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. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $126.29.

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; 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.