Natural Investments LLC Invests $267,000 in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Natural Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,305 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $267,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FI. Valley National Advisers Inc. acquired a new position in Fiserv during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Fiserv during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in shares of Fiserv in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Fiserv during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $50,000. 90.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Fiserv from $214.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Fiserv from $258.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Stephens upped their target price on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $239.83.

Fiserv Price Performance

FI stock opened at $211.10 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $118.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. Fiserv, Inc. has a 52-week low of $145.98 and a 52-week high of $238.59. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $218.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $204.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.06.

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

Fiserv announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 20th that allows the company to buyback 60,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often 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.