Advisors Asset Management Inc. Increases Position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 6.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,805 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,919 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $12,901,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Campbell Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Fiserv from $233.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Fiserv from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Fiserv from $208.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Fiserv from $214.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $239.83.

Insider Activity at Fiserv

In other news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.55, for a total transaction of $10,599,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 227,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,637,326.05. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.75% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Fiserv Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of Fiserv stock opened at $218.05 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $122.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.45, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $145.98 and a 12-month high of $238.59. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $219.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $205.19.

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

Fiserv declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, February 20th that permits the company to buyback 60,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are 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.