Blair William & Co. IL Sells 36,500 Shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Blair William & Co. IL lessened its holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,074,202 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 36,500 shares during the period. Fiserv accounts for 1.2% of Blair William & Co. IL’s holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Blair William & Co. IL’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $426,083,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Soros Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fiserv by 71.7% during the 3rd quarter. Soros Capital Management LLC now owns 54,797 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,844,000 after buying an additional 22,884 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in Fiserv by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 123,353 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $25,339,000 after acquiring an additional 6,072 shares during the period. Chiron Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Fiserv during the third quarter worth approximately $4,709,000. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its stake in shares of Fiserv by 170.4% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 6,839 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,405,000 after purchasing an additional 4,310 shares during the period. Finally, Cardano Risk Management B.V. acquired a new stake in Fiserv during the 4th quarter worth approximately $97,254,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on FI shares. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Fiserv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Fiserv from $258.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Fiserv from $208.00 to $231.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fiserv presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $242.32.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 227,711 shares in the company, valued at $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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of FI stock opened at $221.75 on Thursday. Fiserv, Inc. has a twelve month low of $145.98 and a twelve month high of $238.59. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $221.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $207.28. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $124.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 earnings per share (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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fiserv declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 20th that permits the company to buyback 60,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are 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.