Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. Invests $218,000 in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS)

Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. acquired a new position in Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,940 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $218,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 105.8% during 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 last quarter. 86.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Discover Financial Services Stock Down 1.4 %

DFS stock traded down $1.75 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $123.61. 714,809 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,122,051. Discover Financial Services has a 1 year low of $79.04 and a 1 year high of $131.65. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $124.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $109.29. The stock has a market cap of $30.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($1.88). Discover Financial Services had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 17.07%. The firm had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.07 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.58 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Discover Financial Services will post 11.86 EPS for the current year.

Discover Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. Discover Financial Services’s payout ratio is presently 31.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Discover Financial Services from $139.00 to $121.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 19th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Discover Financial Services from $117.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Discover Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective (up from $117.00) on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Wolfe Research restated a “peer perform” rating on shares of Discover Financial Services in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.