Brokerages Set Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) Target Price at $239.83

Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) has received an average rating of “Buy” from the twenty-five brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment 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 company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $239.83.

FI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Fiserv from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Fiserv from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Fiserv from $233.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Fiserv from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th.

Insider Transactions at Fiserv

In other news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.55, for a total transaction of $10,599,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 227,711 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Fiserv

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Fiserv by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,891,207 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,435,280,000 after purchasing an additional 218,833 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in Fiserv by 22.5% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,568,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,376,482,000 after buying an additional 2,126,419 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Fiserv by 16.2% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 8,030,889 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,649,705,000 after buying an additional 1,121,597 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Fiserv by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 6,936,554 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,424,907,000 after buying an additional 340,938 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Fiserv during the 4th quarter valued at $1,406,452,000. 90.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fiserv Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of Fiserv stock opened at $211.10 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $118.49 billion, a PE ratio of 39.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. Fiserv has a 1-year low of $145.98 and a 1-year high of $238.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The business has a 50-day moving average of $218.77 and a 200-day moving average of $204.05.

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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fiserv will post 10.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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