Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 9,811 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 414 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $2,015,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Fiserv Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of FI stock opened at $213.91 on Wednesday. Fiserv, Inc. has a 1 year low of $145.98 and a 1 year high of $238.59. The stock has a market cap of $120.06 billion, a PE ratio of 39.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. The business’s fifty day moving average is $218.65 and its 200-day moving average is $204.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 analysts expect that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fiserv announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 20th that authorizes the company to buyback 60,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on FI. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Fiserv from $233.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Fiserv from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Fiserv from $214.00 to $239.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Fiserv from $258.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Citigroup increased 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $239.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 in the company, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. The trade was a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.75% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.