Vestcor Inc Acquires 9,255 Shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Vestcor Inc boosted its holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 81.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,612 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,255 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $4,234,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv during the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv during the fourth quarter valued at about $49,000. 90.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on FI. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Fiserv from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens upped their price target on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Fiserv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Compass Point assumed coverage on Fiserv in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $278.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $239.83.

Insider Transactions at Fiserv

In related news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 227,711 shares in the company, valued at $53,637,326.05. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE FI opened at $209.23 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $117.44 billion, a PE ratio of 38.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $218.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $204.09. Fiserv, Inc. has a 12-month low of $145.98 and a 12-month high of $238.59.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last announced its earnings results 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, analysts expect that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fiserv declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 20th that authorizes the company to buyback 60,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.