Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) Shares Sold by Welch & Forbes LLC

Welch & Forbes LLC cut its stake in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 2.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 874,761 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 21,833 shares during the period. Fiserv makes up about 2.3% of Welch & Forbes LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $179,694,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FI. Catalina Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in Fiserv by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 2,112 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $379,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. acquired a new position in shares of Fiserv during the 3rd quarter worth $310,000. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 9.8% during the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,342 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,217,000 after buying an additional 1,105 shares in the last quarter. Two Point Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Two Point Capital Management Inc. now owns 50,611 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,092,000 after buying an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Graypoint LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 27,077 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,864,000 after buying an additional 478 shares in the last quarter. 90.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Fiserv

In related 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 227,711 shares in the company, valued at $53,637,326.05. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.75% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fiserv Trading Down 2.7 %

NYSE FI opened at $219.75 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $218.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $202.53. Fiserv, Inc. has a 12 month low of $145.98 and a 12 month high of $238.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $123.34 billion, a PE ratio of 40.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. 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 (NYSE:FI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, analysts expect that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 EPS for the current year.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on FI. Barclays boosted their price target on Fiserv from $235.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Fiserv from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Fiserv from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Fiserv from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $239.83.

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.