Fiserv (NASDAQ:FISV) Raised to Hold at Zacks Research

Fiserv (NASDAQ:FISV) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Thursday, Zacks reports.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Stephens began coverage on shares of Fiserv in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $57.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Fiserv from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Fiserv from $50.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Fiserv and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered Fiserv from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $63.11.

Fiserv Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of FISV traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $62.88. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 9,729,897 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,641,700. Fiserv has a 12-month low of $43.87 and a 12-month high of $70.41. The stock has a market cap of $33.44 billion, a PE ratio of -8.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.19 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The company’s 50 day moving average is $49.34 and its 200 day moving average is $54.59.

Fiserv (NASDAQ:FISV) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $4.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.85 billion. Fiserv had a return on equity of 15.80% and a net margin of 13.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Fiserv will post 7.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fiserv

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. William Mack & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Next Level Wealth Planning LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fiserv during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Fiserv during the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Fiserv during the second quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 49.3% during the third quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 854 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Fiserv this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Fiserv reported quarterly EPS of $1.75, topping the $1.72 consensus estimate; revenue of $4.85 billion matched expectations. Shares subsequently bounced, and coverage highlighted Project Elevate as support for an undervaluation thesis. Article: Fiserv Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings Article: Fiserv Rebounds on Project Elevate
• Positive Sentiment: KBW reaffirmed its Buy rating and raised its price target. Citigroup and RBC also issued positive forecasts, adding support to the bullish view. Article: KBW Reaffirms Buy Rating Article: Citigroup Forecast Article: RBC Forecast
• Neutral Sentiment: Fiserv added Raj Seshadri to its board, a move tied to its payments and data focus. UBS raised its target to $68 but kept a Neutral rating. Article: Fiserv Adds Raj Seshadri to Board
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue declined 1.3% year over year, and analyst opinion remains divided: Bank of America maintained a Sell rating, while B. Riley kept its Hold rating. Article: Bank of America Maintains Sell Rating Article: B. Riley Maintains Hold Rating

Fiserv Company Profile

Fiserv is a financial technology company that provides payment and financial services technology to banks, credit unions, businesses and merchants. Its offerings include payment processing, digital banking, account processing, debit and credit card services, and tools that help financial institutions manage customer accounts and transactions.

For merchants, Fiserv offers Clover, a platform that combines point-of-sale hardware and software with payment acceptance and business management tools.