Analysts Issue Forecasts for Discover Financial Services’ Q2 2023 Earnings (NYSE:DFS)

Posted by Defense World Staff on Apr 24th, 2023

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS – Get Rating) – Analysts at William Blair decreased their Q2 2023 earnings per share estimates for Discover Financial Services in a research report issued on Friday, April 21st. William Blair analyst R. Napoli now expects that the financial services provider will post earnings of $3.46 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $3.51. The consensus estimate for Discover Financial Services’ current full-year earnings is $13.40 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Discover Financial Services’ Q3 2023 earnings at $3.46 EPS, Q1 2024 earnings at $3.47 EPS, Q2 2024 earnings at $3.79 EPS, Q3 2024 earnings at $3.77 EPS and Q4 2024 earnings at $4.19 EPS.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.84 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.71 billion. Discover Financial Services had a return on equity of 30.68% and a net margin of 24.65%. Discover Financial Services’s quarterly revenue was up 29.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.22 earnings per share.

DFS has been the topic of a number of other reports. StockNews.com started coverage on Discover Financial Services in a research report on Thursday, March 16th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Discover Financial Services from $111.00 to $102.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $115.00 to $112.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 5th. Credit Suisse Group reduced their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $123.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Discover Financial Services from $105.00 to $103.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 31st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $117.13.

Discover Financial Services Price Performance

NYSE:DFS opened at $105.52 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The company has a market capitalization of $27.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.43. Discover Financial Services has a 12 month low of $87.64 and a 12 month high of $121.17. The business’s 50-day moving average is $103.60 and its 200 day moving average is $103.68.

Discover Financial Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This is a boost from Discover Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 24th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. Discover Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.16%.

Discover Financial Services announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 19th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.70 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 9.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Carlos Minetti sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.00, for a total transaction of $826,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 114,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,510,174. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Robert Andrew Eichfeld sold 13,477 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.18, for a total value of $1,538,803.86. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,597,697.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Carlos Minetti sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.00, for a total value of $826,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 114,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,510,174. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Discover Financial Services by 52.8% in the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $414,000 after purchasing an additional 1,572 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in Discover Financial Services during the third quarter worth $1,591,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 3.8% during the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 78,971 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,180,000 after buying an additional 2,914 shares during the period. Integrated Advisors Network LLC lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 11,856 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,160,000 after buying an additional 742 shares during the period. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp lifted its holdings in Discover Financial Services by 3.5% during the third quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 4,590 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $417,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.74% of the company’s stock.

About Discover Financial Services

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Discover Financial Services is a holding company. It operates under the Digital Banking and Payment Services segments. The Digital Banking segment focuses on consumer banking and lending products, specifically Discover-branded credit cards issued to individuals on the Discover Network and other consumer banking products and services including private student loans, personal loans, home loans, and deposit products.