Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has assigned a hold recommendation, twenty-one have assigned a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $239.35.

Several brokerages have commented on FI. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Fiserv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of Fiserv from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Fiserv from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Fiserv from $233.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fiserv news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was 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 $53,637,326.05. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Fiserv

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vega Investment Solutions acquired a new stake in Fiserv in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Fiserv during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Fiserv during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in Fiserv in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv Trading Down 3.1 %

NYSE FI opened at $203.96 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $113.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.91. Fiserv has a 52-week low of $145.98 and a 52-week high of $238.59. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $221.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $210.22.

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%. Equities research analysts expect that Fiserv will post 10.23 EPS for the current year.

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

About Fiserv

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.