Merit Financial Group LLC Has $4.07 Million Position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 146.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 19,803 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,783 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $4,068,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Clean Yield Group boosted its position in Fiserv by 431.3% in the third quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 170 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Fiserv by 42.5% in the third quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 191 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 95.5% in the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 260 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in Fiserv during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Fiserv during the 3rd quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE:FI opened at $208.67 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $118.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.13, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $209.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $186.76. Fiserv, Inc. has a 1 year low of $136.93 and a 1 year high of $223.23.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.04. Fiserv had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 15.22%. The business had revenue of $5.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.96 EPS. Fiserv’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Fiserv, Inc. will post 8.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Fiserv from $208.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $222.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $186.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Fiserv from $225.00 to $238.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $190.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $224.00.

Insider Activity at Fiserv

In other Fiserv news, Director Doyle Simons sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.97, for a total transaction of $8,078,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 76,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,386,074.60. This represents a 34.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Heidi Miller sold 30,000 shares of Fiserv stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.13, for a total transaction of $6,033,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 33,235 shares in the company, valued at $6,684,555.55. This trade represents a 47.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 90,821 shares of company stock valued at $18,581,095. 0.75% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fiserv Company Profile

Fiserv, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides payments and financial services technology services in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Latin America, the Asia-Pacific, and internationally. It operates through Merchant Acceptance, Financial Technology, and Payments and Network segments.