Cheviot Value Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Cheviot Value Management LLC lessened its holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 45,704 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 785 shares during the period. Fiserv accounts for approximately 1.8% of Cheviot Value Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Cheviot Value Management LLC’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $9,389,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Fiserv during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,406,452,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Fiserv during the 4th quarter valued at $614,982,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its stake in Fiserv by 343.7% during the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,806,579 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $576,527,000 after buying an additional 2,174,025 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 65.6% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 5,437,246 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,116,919,000 after acquiring an additional 2,153,554 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Fiserv by 22.5% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,568,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,376,482,000 after purchasing an additional 2,126,419 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fiserv news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 227,711 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. The trade was a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on FI shares. Stephens increased their price target on Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Fiserv from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $246.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased 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. BMO Capital Markets upped 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. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $235.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fiserv presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $234.79.

Fiserv Stock Down 18.7 %

FI stock opened at $176.55 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $217.25 and its 200 day moving average is $211.85. The firm has a market cap of $98.62 billion, a PE ratio of 32.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.91. Fiserv, Inc. has a one year low of $146.25 and a one year high of $238.59. 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 (NYSE:FI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.06. Fiserv had a return on equity of 17.93% and a net margin of 15.31%. The firm had revenue of $4.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.86 billion. On average, research analysts forecast that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 EPS for the current year.

Fiserv declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 20th that permits the company to repurchase 60,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is 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.