Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Sold by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas lessened its position in shares of Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Free Report) by 67.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 17,487 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 35,894 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $1,966,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Discover Financial Services in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Discover Financial Services by 105.8% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 465 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 239 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a "peer perform" rating on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Barclays upped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $120.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Citigroup upped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $127.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Discover Financial Services from $116.00 to $104.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Discover Financial Services from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Discover Financial Services presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $126.29.

Discover Financial Services Trading Up 0.5 %

Discover Financial Services stock traded up $0.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $125.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,084,114 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,295,473. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.43 billion, a PE ratio of 14.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.43. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $79.04 and a 1 year high of $131.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The stock's fifty day moving average is $125.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $111.31.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.98 by ($1.88). Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 17.07% and a net margin of 10.56%. The firm had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.58 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 11.48 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. Discover Financial Services's payout ratio is currently 31.93%.

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; private student loans, 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.