ProShare Advisors LLC Purchases 4,711 Shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 8.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 60,037 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 4,711 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC's holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $10,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings 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 buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Discover Financial Services Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE DFS traded down $2.73 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $197.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 31,289,322 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,791,401. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $175.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $179.60. 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 has a one year low of $119.95 and a one year high of $207.42. The stock has a market cap of $49.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.16.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.92. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 26.18% and a net margin of 17.29%. The business had revenue of $4.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.10 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on DFS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $169.00 to $129.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Argus raised shares of Discover Financial Services to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $193.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $191.64.

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.