Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) Shares Purchased by Vestcor Inc

Vestcor Inc increased its holdings in shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 81.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,612 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,255 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $4,234,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of FI. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Fiserv by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,442,476 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,696,341,000 after buying an additional 1,427,664 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Fiserv in the 3rd quarter worth about $764,543,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Fiserv by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,711,072 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $762,328,000 after buying an additional 164,949 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Fiserv by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,620,785 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $743,782,000 after buying an additional 90,475 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Fiserv in the 4th quarter worth about $614,982,000. 90.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Fiserv

In other news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 227,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE FI opened at $209.23 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $117.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.82, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. Fiserv, Inc. has a 52-week low of $145.98 and a 52-week high of $238.59. The business’s 50 day moving average is $218.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $204.09.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Research analysts predict that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 EPS for the current year.

Fiserv announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 20th that authorizes the company to buyback 60,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on FI. Barclays lifted their price objective on Fiserv from $235.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com cut Fiserv from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price 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 target price on Fiserv from $258.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $239.83.

Fiserv 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.