Allred Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Allred Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 4.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,921 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 199 shares during the period. Allred Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $1,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FI. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Fiserv by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,685,157 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $302,737,000 after acquiring an additional 48,413 shares during the last quarter. Invst LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fiserv in the third quarter valued at approximately $211,000. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Fiserv by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,275 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $948,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Fiserv by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 35,463 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,371,000 after purchasing an additional 497 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Fiserv by 1,469.7% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 55,802 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $10,025,000 after buying an additional 52,247 shares in the last quarter. 90.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Fiserv from $258.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Fiserv from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Fiserv in a report on Sunday, March 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Fiserv from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fiserv presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 227,711 shares in the company, valued at $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 is available through this hyperlink. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Fiserv Stock Performance

Shares of Fiserv stock opened at $208.51 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.06. Fiserv, Inc. has a 1 year low of $145.98 and a 1 year high of $238.59. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $219.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $211.11. The firm has a market cap of $116.47 billion, a PE ratio of 38.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.91.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fiserv announced that its Board of Directors 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 purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.