Horizon Investment Services LLC Boosts Holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Horizon Investment Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 7.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 24,159 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,617 shares during the period. Fiserv accounts for about 2.1% of Horizon Investment Services LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Horizon Investment Services LLC’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $4,963,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Fiserv by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 11,104 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,281,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Fiserv by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 4,109 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $841,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in Fiserv by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 2,160 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $444,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Fiserv by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,126 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $848,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hemington Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Fiserv by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 864 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $177,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FI opened at $216.15 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $121.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $222.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $207.67. Fiserv, Inc. has a 52 week low of $145.98 and a 52 week high of $238.59. 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 (NYSE:FI) last posted its quarterly 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 EPS for the current year.

Fiserv declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share 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 purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on FI shares. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Fiserv in a research report on Sunday, March 23rd. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Fiserv from $258.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $235.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Fiserv from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $242.32.

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.