Nuveen Asset Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 48.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,365,660 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 443,521 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 0.54% of Discover Financial Services worth $236,573,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DFS. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Discover Financial Services by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,045,208 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,377,961,000 after purchasing an additional 290,937 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Discover Financial Services by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,553,016 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,308,409,000 after buying an additional 59,154 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Discover Financial Services by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,240,451 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,082,826,000 after purchasing an additional 165,589 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth about $724,720,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Discover Financial Services by 38.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,974,471 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $515,268,000 after purchasing an additional 826,287 shares during the last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DFS traded down $2.73 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $197.76. 31,289,322 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,784,714. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $172.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $178.68. Discover Financial Services has a twelve month low of $119.95 and a twelve month high of $207.42. The firm has a market cap of $49.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.39, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.16.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DFS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $169.00 to $129.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $185.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $186.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $219.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Discover Financial Services currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $191.64.

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.