Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Sells 237,118 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership reduced its position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 11.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,871,271 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 237,118 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $324,160,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 78.1% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Finally, Bfsg LLC bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DFS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Discover Financial Services from $146.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $262.00 to $219.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $192.40.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

DFS opened at $158.23 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $39.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.45. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $184.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $170.03. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $119.31 and a 1 year high of $205.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.13 by $1.98. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 26.18%. Equities analysts expect that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.77%. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 17.54%.

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; 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.