Discover Financial Services

Together, the top ten investors in Discover Financial Services (DFS) stock sold 0.4 million shares in the first quarter.

Visa (V) is trading at a forward PE ratio of 27.7x, which is higher than its five-year average PE ratio of 24.5x.

Visa (V) has seen three upward revisions in its target price in April. On April 10, Cowen increased its target price for Visa from $161 to $177.

The implied volatility in Visa fell by ~12.5 percentage points from January 2 to 18.73% on April 12. Visa stock has risen ~21% during this period.

According to data released on March 29, consumer spending rose 0.1% in January. Disposable personal income fell 0.2% in January.

The Walt Disney Company is among those large American companies that have launched back-to-school programs for their employees.

A healthy job market and a steady hike in wages have increased the spending power of consumers.

Mastercard (MA) is scheduled to report its third-quarter results on October 30.

The US GDP grew 4.2% in the second quarter, which was almost double the 2.2% increase registered in the first quarter.

Visa (V) plans to report its Q4 2018 earnings on October 24. Analysts expect Visa to report EPS of $1.20, marking YoY growth of 33.3%.

The Consumer Confidence Index increased to 133.4 in August from 127.9 in July—its highest reading since its October 2000 reading of 135.8.

Improving GDP growth, a healthy job market, and steady wage growth have increased the disposable income of consumers, thereby giving them greater spending power.

Visa stock (V), which was around $78 at the beginning of 2017, now trades close to $143, a jump of over 83%.

Visa (V) has been making efforts to increase the use of contactless payments in the United States after experiencing a positive response.

Analysts’ rating on Mastercard (MA) improved in July compared to June.

Mastercard (MA) has a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.04x on an NTM (next-12-month) basis compared to the peer average of 15.95x.

In the second quarter, Mastercard (MA) witnessed total gross dollar volumes (or GDV) of $1.5 trillion.

On July 26, Discover Financial Services (DFS) released its earnings report for the second quarter.

On July 25, Visa (V) is scheduled to report its results for the third fiscal quarter. Analysts expect Visa to post an EPS of $1.09.

Mastercard (MA) is set to release its second-quarter earnings report on July 26. What can we expect?

Capital One Financial (COF) posted second-quarter results on July 19.

Capital One Financial Corporation’s (COF) PE (price-to-earnings) ratio is 8.77x on an NTM basis compared to its competitors’ average PE ratio of 20.79x.

In the first quarter, Capital One’s net income totaled $1.3 billion while Discover’s net income reached $666.0 million.

On July 18, American Express (AXP) is expected to report its Q2 2018. Analysts expect EPS to be $1.82 compared to $1.86 in the first quarter.

Capital One (COF) is expected to release its Q2 2018 earnings on July 19. Analysts expect EPS of $2.68, a YoY rise of 38.1%.

Growing trade tensions are a primary concern, as they could impact the performances of Discover Financial Services (DFS) and its peers.

Discover Financial Services (DFS) generated net interest income amounting to $2.1 billion in the first quarter.

The economic and business environment prevailing in an economy affects the business fundamentals of payment processing giants like Visa (V) and Mastercard (MA).

On June 25, the Dow Jones Industrial Average saw strong downward pressure primarily due to escalating US-China trade tensions.

In June, eight of the 32 analysts covering the stock have given it a “buy” rating, and two analysts have given it a “strong sell.”

The second quarter could be beneficial for American Express (AXP) due to an expected rise in consumer loans and transactions.

Analysts still love Visa (V) stock, primarily because of its strong outlook.

Visa’s (V) NTM (next-12-month) and LTM (last-12-month) price-to-book ratios are 7.6x and 8.9x, respectively.

Visa’s (V) performance is expected to be primarily driven by spending trends, electronic payment adoption, and tapping into areas where many payments are still made in cash.

Discover Financial Services’ (DFS) Direct Banking segment generates most of its interest income from credit card loans.

For Discover Financial, nine analysts recommend a “strong buy,” eight recommend a “hold,” and ten recommend a “buy” on the stock.

At the end of the first quarter, Discover Financial’s Payment Services segment saw total volumes of $88.4 billion.

Capital One’s (COF) price-to-earnings ratio stood at ~9.1x on an NTM basis compared to the average of its peers of ~16.7x.

American Express is being covered by 33 analysts, 17 of whom have recommended “holds” and two of whom have recommended “strong sells” on the stock.

American Express (AXP) incurred total expenses amounting to $6.9 billion in the first quarter, implying a rise of 9% on a YoY (year-over-year) basis.

The Global Merchant Services segment’s total revenue (after deducting interest expenses) amounted to $1.2 billion in the first quarter.

American Express’s (AXP) International Consumer and Network Services segment is affected by consumer spending levels.

Wall Street analysts have given Mastercard (MA) an average EPS estimate of $1.5 for the second quarter, reflecting a year-over-year rise.

Analysts expect Visa to reach $140.09 in a year, implying a 7.2% rise from the stock’s current price of $130.72.

While Visa’s (V) NTM (next-12-month) price-to-book ratio is 7.4x, competitors’ average is 8.0x.

Visa (V) is expected to post EPS (earnings per share) of $1.11 in the third fiscal quarter (ending in June), boosted by strong business fundamentals.

At the J.P. Morgan Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference, Visa (V) stated it would be targeting the US market’s significant untapped opportunities, which could boost growth.

Mastercard benefited from the Latin America region. The region witnessed favorable momentum in consumer confidence and lower unemployment.

Mastercard (MA) released its earnings report this morning. The company reported earnings per share or EPS of $1.50 in 1Q18.

Five analysts suggested a “hold,” one recommended a “strong sell,” and nine recommended a “strong buy” on DFS stock.

Discover Financial Services (DFS) has a price-to-earnings ratio on an NTM (next-12-months) basis of ~8.9x, which highlights its lower valuations.

Discover’s enterprise-value-to-revenue ratio is ~4.0.

Discover Financial Services’ (DFS) Direct Banking segment generated pretax income of $3.4 billion in 2017.

Discover Financial’s (DFS) Payment Services segment saw a rise in its pretax income from $107.0 million in 2016 to $145.0 million in 2017.

Discover’s 4Q17 operating margin stood at ~49.6% on a TTM (trailing-12-months) basis.

Wall Street analysts gave a high estimate of $2.02 and a low estimate of $1.65 on Discover’s earnings per share for 1Q18.

Mastercard (MA) saw positive momentum in its business in 2017 thanks to the adoption of e-commerce.

On April 9, 2018, Mastercard (MA) made an announcement regarding the integration of its Masterpass service with the My Phillips 66 app.

Visa’s (V) price-to-book ratio stands at 6.83x on a next-12-month basis, implying a premium valuation compared to its peer average of 3.09x.

Of its total fiscal 1Q18 net operating revenue of $4.9 billion, Visa’s service revenue made up $2.1 billion, or 44.1%.

In February 2018, Discover Financial Services (DFS) was covered by 25 analysts, of whom nine suggested a “strong buy” and five recommended a “hold” on the stock.

Visa (V) announced on February 2 the upgrade of various POS (point-of-sale) terminals for certain businesses in Minneapolis.

On February 22, Mastercard (MA) announced through a press release that around a quarter of Europeans support contactless payments through wearable devices like a keyring or smartwatch.

Worldpay (WP) and Visa (V) said Bitcoin participants who have executed transactions on Coinbase through debit or credit card may have come across duplicate transactions.

Visa (V) recorded strong fiscal 2017 with the help of positive momentum in cross-border volumes as well as payments volumes.

Visa (V) announced its acquisition of Fraedom, which provides payment solutions for financial institutions.

Wall Street analysts have given a one-year price estimate of $191.40 for Mastercard.

Twenty-six analysts are tracking Discover Financial Services (DFS) in January 2018. Six of them have given it a “hold” rating, and one is recommending a “strong sell.”

Discover Financial Services (DFS) has a PE (price-to-earnings) ratio on an NTM (next 12-month) basis of 10.26x, while the average for its peers is 13.97x.

The Direct Banking segment of Discover Financial Services (DFS) generated pre-tax income of $870 million in 4Q17 compared to $868 million in 4Q16, which was a marginal rise.

In 4Q17, Discover Financial incurred total operating expenses of $1 billion compared to $897 million in 4Q16, which is a rise of 15%.

As of September 30, 2017, Visa (V) reported total assets of $67.9 billion compared to $64 billion as of September 30, 2016.

Visa (V) posted a net income margin of ~35.0% in the last 12 months. American Express and Discover reported net income margins of ~13.9% and ~23.8%, respectively, in the same timeframe.

Mastercard (MA) has a PB (price-to-book) ratio of 17.24x on a next 12-month (or NTM) basis, which reflects its higher valuations.

Visa (V) announced its fiscal 2017 results and its fiscal 4Q17 earnings report on October 25. The consumer financial giant reported strong numbers in fiscal 4Q17.

After making adjustments related to foreign exchange, American Express (AXP) saw a YoY (year-over-year) rise of 8.0% in revenues for 3Q17.

Total 3Q17 revenues for American Express’s (AXP) Global Commercial Services division were $2.6 billion in 3Q17 compared to $2.4 billion in 3Q16, reflecting a 6.0% rise.

American Express (AXP) posted EPS (earnings per share) of $1.50 for 3Q17, which beat Wall Street’s estimate of $1.48. The company also beat analysts’ estimate for revenue.

Capital One repurchased 5.4 million shares in 1Q15—representing 1% of the its total outstanding shares. Its strategic priorities for 2015 haven’t changed.

In October 2017, Discover Financial Services (DFS) is being covered by 24 analysts. Of those, only one analyst has rated DFS a “strong sell,” and none of them have given it a “sell” rating.

Discover Financial Services’ (DFS) banking services have been ranked second in terms of customer satisfaction, according to a survey conducted by J.D. Power in August 2017.

Discover Financial Services (DFS) has seen strong growth in loans in 2Q17 compared to 2Q16. For credit card loans, it saw an 8.0% growth in 2Q17 compared to 2Q16.

Discover Financial Services (DFS) could see an increase in volumes in 3Q17, mainly due to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

Discover Financial’s employee compensation expenses rose 7% in 1H17 compared to 1H16.

Discover Financial Services (DFS) posted earnings per share of $1.40 in 2Q17, which missed the analysts’ estimate of $1.45. DFS reported revenues of $2.42 billion in 2Q17, beating the analysts’ estimate of $2.40 billion.

As of September 30, 2016, Visa (V) has reported a total asset balance of $64.03 billion. As of June 30, 2017, the company managed to report a total asset balance of $64.00 billion.

Visa (V) reported total operating expenses of $5.56 billion from fiscal 1Q16 to fiscal 3Q16 and $4.57 billion from fiscal 1Q17 to fiscal 3Q17, representing a substantial fall of 18%.

Visa’s service revenues in fiscal 3Q17 were $1.9 billion, reflecting a 19.1% rise on a YoY (year-over-year) basis.

American Express (AXP) witnessed a rise of 12.0% in its proprietary cards volume in 2Q17, which reflects a marginal increase of 1.0% from 1Q17.

Consumer financial companies such as American Express (AXP), Mastercard (MA), and Visa (V) beat analysts’ estimates for EPS (earnings per share) in 2Q17.

Visa (V) reported strong net revenues in fiscal 3Q17 on the back of processed transactions, cross-border volumes, and payments volumes.

Visa (V) has been pursuing the Chinese market as a long-term opportunity, which could lead to an increase in its payments volume.

Visa’s five-year average dividend yield (V) stood at 0.68%.

American Express’s (AXP) Global Merchant Services division witnessed an increase in its 2Q17 net income to $430 million, reflecting a rise of 15% from its 2Q16 net income.

In 2Q17, American Express’s (AXP) International Consumer and Network Services division posted net income of $209 million, reflecting an 8% fall on a year-over-year basis.

In 2Q17, American Express (AXP) posted earnings per share of $1.47, beating the analysts’ estimate of $1.44. AXP’s EPS resulted from increased YoY revenues and the credit quality of its existing customers.

In fiscal 2016, Visa (V) declared dividends of $0.56 per share. Wall Street analysts expect Visa to declare dividends of $0.66 per share for fiscal 2017.

Visa (V) will report its fiscal 3Q17 earnings on July 20, 2017. Wall Street analysts expect Visa to report EPS of $0.81 per share—a decline of 5.8%.

Wall Street analysts have given a price target of $84.84 on Amex stock, which implies a rise of 0.6% from its current price level.

For American Express, Wall Street analysts are expecting to see EPS (earnings per share) of $1.43 for 2Q17.