Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) have received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the twenty-five analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty-one have assigned a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $239.83.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on FI shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on Fiserv from $235.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Fiserv from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Fiserv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Fiserv from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fiserv

In other 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 owns 227,711 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction 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.

Institutional Trading of Fiserv

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fiserv by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 11,104 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,281,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Fiserv by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,862 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $794,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in Fiserv by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 4,109 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $841,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC raised its stake in Fiserv by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 2,160 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Fiserv by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,126 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $848,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv Price Performance

Shares of FI opened at $214.91 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. Fiserv has a 1 year low of $145.98 and a 1 year high of $238.59. The stock has a market cap of $120.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $218.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $204.87.

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

Fiserv announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 20th that permits the company to repurchase 60,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.