Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) Holdings Boosted by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC grew its holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 28.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 504,684 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 112,144 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $103,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fiserv during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Fiserv during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in Fiserv during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Campbell Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in Fiserv in the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Fiserv from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Fiserv from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Fiserv from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $239.83.

Fiserv Price Performance

NYSE:FI opened at $222.65 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Fiserv, Inc. has a one year low of $145.98 and a one year high of $238.59. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $221.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $207.18. The stock has a market cap of $124.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.31, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.03. Fiserv had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 17.93%. Analysts anticipate that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Fiserv declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, February 20th that allows the company to repurchase 60,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fiserv news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.55, for a total value of $10,599,750.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 227,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,637,326.05. The trade was a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv 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.