Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT Grows Position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT grew its holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 510,153 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,441 shares during the period. Fiserv accounts for about 1.8% of Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT owned 0.09% of Fiserv worth $104,796,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Fiserv by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 2,160 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Fiserv by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,126 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $848,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Fiserv by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 864 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $177,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC boosted its position in Fiserv by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 1,752 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $360,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optas LLC increased its stake in shares of Fiserv by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Optas LLC now owns 3,216 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $578,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. 90.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fiserv Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE FI opened at $234.63 on Friday. 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 50-day moving average price of $213.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $197.74. Fiserv, Inc. has a 52-week low of $145.98 and a 52-week high of $238.00. The stock has a market cap of $133.48 billion, a PE ratio of 43.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.94.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last released its earnings results 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 research analysts forecast that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Insider Transactions at Fiserv

In other news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of Fiserv stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.55, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FI has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on Fiserv from $190.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target 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. Susquehanna lifted their price target on Fiserv from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price 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.