Mizuho Securities USA LLC Increases Position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its stake in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 44.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 53,921 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,588 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $11,076,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in FI. Jacobi Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Fiserv by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 11,104 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,281,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of Fiserv by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 4,109 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $841,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC increased its stake in Fiserv by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 2,160 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $444,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake 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 buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hemington Wealth Management increased its stake in Fiserv by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 864 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $177,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 90.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 227,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Fiserv Stock Down 1.7 %

NYSE:FI opened at $218.01 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 stock’s fifty day moving average is $220.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $206.01. Fiserv, Inc. has a 52 week low of $145.98 and a 52 week high of $238.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93.

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

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com lowered Fiserv from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Fiserv from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Fiserv from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Fiserv from $233.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Three investment 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.