Kentucky Retirement Systems Has $2.45 Million Stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Kentucky Retirement Systems reduced its position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,491 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,393 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $2,454,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Elser Financial Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $91,044,000. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Discover Financial Services in the 1st quarter valued at $71,693,000. Samlyn Capital LLC lifted its position in Discover Financial Services by 368.0% during the 2nd quarter. Samlyn Capital LLC now owns 646,691 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $84,594,000 after buying an additional 508,504 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 430.5% during the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 443,707 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $54,752,000 after buying an additional 360,074 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis grew its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 1,041.9% in the 1st quarter. Natixis now owns 233,852 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,656,000 after acquiring an additional 213,373 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

NYSE DFS opened at $176.07 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $147.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $136.07. Discover Financial Services has a 12-month low of $84.03 and a 12-month high of $188.26. The company has a market capitalization of $44.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.41. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 21.38% and a net margin of 13.78%. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.36 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.59 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.23 earnings per share for the current 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 dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 22.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DFS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada increased 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. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Discover Financial Services has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $138.81.

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.