Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) Shares Bought by Arete Wealth Advisors LLC

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 16.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,881 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 261 shares during the period. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $387,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IHT Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Fiserv by 31.7% during the third quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,056 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $551,000 after purchasing an additional 735 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in Fiserv by 19.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 40,972 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $7,361,000 after buying an additional 6,722 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Fiserv by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 279,469 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $50,207,000 after buying an additional 26,459 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Fiserv by 80.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 50,386 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,052,000 after buying an additional 22,410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fiserv by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 12,373 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,223,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. 90.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Fiserv Stock Performance

Shares of Fiserv stock opened at $198.77 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $111.57 billion, a PE ratio of 36.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.91. Fiserv, Inc. has a 12 month low of $145.98 and a 12 month 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. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $222.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $209.42.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fiserv announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan 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. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Fiserv

In other Fiserv news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.55, for a total value of $10,599,750.00. Following the completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on FI shares. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Fiserv in a report on Sunday, March 23rd. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens raised their target price on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Fiserv from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $246.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $243.64.

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.