Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd. Purchases 616 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd. increased its position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 0.2% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 327,210 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 616 shares during the quarter. Discover Financial Services comprises 4.0% of Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest position. Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $45,904,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DFS. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 506.5% during the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Discover Financial Services during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 147.8% during the 2nd quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its position in shares of Discover Financial Services by 72.5% in the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 348.2% in the 2nd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Discover Financial Services Stock Up 3.6 %

Shares of Discover Financial Services stock opened at $181.40 on Tuesday. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $82.68 and a 1-year high of $188.26. The company has a market capitalization of $45.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.64, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.41. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $143.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $134.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.36 billion. Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 13.78% and a return on equity of 21.38%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.59 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 13.22 EPS 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays lifted their price target on Discover Financial Services from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. 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. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $156.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $152.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company 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.