Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Trims Position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. lessened its stake in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 273 shares during the quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $1,613,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in Discover Financial Services in the 4th quarter worth about $210,000. GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. increased its stake in Discover Financial Services by 153.4% in the 4th quarter. GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. now owns 61,316 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,892,000 after buying an additional 37,114 shares during the period. OLD National Bancorp IN increased its stake in Discover Financial Services by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 10,792 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,213,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 19.5% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 6,589 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $741,000 after acquiring an additional 1,073 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $983,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO John Greene sold 35,191 shares of Discover Financial Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.51, for a total transaction of $3,748,193.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,980,233.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Discover Financial Services Stock Performance

DFS opened at $126.69 on Tuesday. Discover Financial Services has a 12-month low of $79.04 and a 12-month high of $131.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.74 billion, a PE ratio of 14.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.45. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $122.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of $106.44.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.98 by ($1.88). Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 10.56%. The business had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.58 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 11.34 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $127.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. HSBC increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $107.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $120.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $116.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $126.29.

Discover Financial Services Company 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.