Machina Capital S.A.S. Makes New Investment in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Machina Capital S.A.S. bought a new stake in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 6,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,256,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Valley National Advisers Inc. acquired a new stake in Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Fiserv in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Fiserv in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in Fiserv during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE FI opened at $218.04 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $218.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $202.88. 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 company has a market cap of $122.38 billion, a PE ratio of 40.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. Fiserv, Inc. has a 12 month low of $145.98 and a 12 month high of $238.59.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.03. Fiserv had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 17.93%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Fiserv declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, February 20th that authorizes the company to buyback 60,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Fiserv 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 value of $10,599,750.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 227,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Fiserv from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Fiserv from $258.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fiserv presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.