Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) Shares Sold by Twin Capital Management Inc.

Twin Capital Management Inc. lessened its position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 27,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 601 shares during the period. Twin Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Discover Financial Services were worth $3,144,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DFS. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth approximately $340,672,000. Boston Partners grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 56.5% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 8,597,250 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $743,663,000 after buying an additional 3,102,119 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 489.5% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,999,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $220,307,000 after buying an additional 1,660,180 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 35.6% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,927,342 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $482,042,000 after buying an additional 1,293,260 shares during the period. Finally, Palestra Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the third quarter worth approximately $81,865,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Discover Financial Services

In other news, CFO John Greene sold 35,191 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.51, for a total value of $3,748,193.41. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,592 shares in the company, valued at $1,980,233.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DFS has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research note on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $112.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. HSBC upped their target price on shares of Discover Financial Services from $107.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Wolfe Research restated a “peer perform” rating on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $140.00 target price (up from $117.00) on shares of Discover Financial Services in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $125.22.

Discover Financial Services Stock Up 3.1 %

NYSE DFS traded up $3.66 during trading on Thursday, reaching $123.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,371,633 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,245,194. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.96 billion, a PE ratio of 11.07, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.45. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $121.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $105.53. Discover Financial Services has a 1-year low of $79.04 and a 1-year high of $131.65.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.98 by ($1.88). Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 22.24% and a net margin of 14.30%. The firm had revenue of $4.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.58 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Discover Financial Services will post 11.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.