Fiserv (NYSE:FI) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $238.59 and last traded at $238.08, with a volume of 975682 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $235.69.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on FI. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Fiserv from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Compass Point started coverage on shares of Fiserv in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $278.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Fiserv from $233.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Fiserv currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $239.83.

Fiserv Stock Up 0.8 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $216.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $201.34. The company has a market cap of $133.39 billion, a PE ratio of 44.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.94.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.03. Fiserv had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 17.93%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Fiserv announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase 60,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.55, for a total transaction of $10,599,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 227,711 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Fiserv

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Fiserv by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,891,207 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,435,280,000 after acquiring an additional 218,833 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fiserv by 22.5% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,568,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,376,482,000 after purchasing an additional 2,126,419 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 16.2% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 8,030,889 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,649,705,000 after purchasing an additional 1,121,597 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Fiserv by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 6,936,554 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,424,907,000 after purchasing an additional 340,938 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,406,452,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

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.