WealthShield Partners LLC Lowers Position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

WealthShield Partners LLC cut its stake in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,456 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 546 shares during the quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $2,353,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Fiserv in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund grew its holdings in Fiserv by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 107,283 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $22,038,000 after purchasing an additional 12,700 shares during the period. Delta Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Fiserv during the fourth quarter valued at $1,087,000. MONECO Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Fiserv by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. MONECO Advisors LLC now owns 3,897 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $801,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Fiserv by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,025 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $827,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the period. 90.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fiserv Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Fiserv stock opened at $232.47 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $132.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.06. The company has a fifty day moving average of $213.81 and a 200 day moving average of $198.86. Fiserv, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $145.98 and a fifty-two week high of $237.99.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last issued 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 net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 17.93%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fiserv news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were 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 owns 227,711 shares in the company, valued at $53,637,326.05. The trade was a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Fiserv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Fiserv from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays raised their target price on Fiserv from $235.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fiserv has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $239.83.

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.