Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts give Euronet Worldwide a consensus “Hold” rating: Of seven analysts, three recommend buying, three advise holding and one recommends selling. Their average 12-month price target is $94, compared with the stock’s reported price of $66.03.
• Institutional ownership is substantial: BlackRock, Jupiter Topco and other investors recently established or increased positions, with institutions and hedge funds collectively owning 91.6% of the company.
• Quarterly earnings fell short of estimates but revenue grew: Euronet reported adjusted earnings of $2.82 per share versus the $2.93 consensus, while revenue increased 3.2% year over year. Analysts expect full-year earnings of $9.55 per share.

Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT - Get Free Report) has received an average rating of "Hold" from the seven research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $94.00.

A number of research firms have recently commented on EEFT. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Euronet Worldwide from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings cut Euronet Worldwide from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Euronet Worldwide in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research reduced their price target on shares of Euronet Worldwide from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EEFT. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Euronet Worldwide in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $244,726,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in shares of Euronet Worldwide during the 2nd quarter valued at $98,213,000. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 44.9% during the 1st quarter. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,847,040 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $122,588,000 after acquiring an additional 572,194 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Euronet Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at $37,523,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Euronet Worldwide in the 4th quarter worth $34,345,000. 91.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Euronet Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of Euronet Worldwide stock opened at $66.03 on Friday. Euronet Worldwide has a fifty-two week low of $62.50 and a fifty-two week high of $90.56. The company has a market cap of $2.51 billion, a PE ratio of 10.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.83. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $73.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.37.

Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ:EEFT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.93 by ($0.11). Euronet Worldwide had a return on equity of 28.60% and a net margin of 6.63%.During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.56 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Euronet Worldwide will post 9.55 EPS for the current year.

Euronet Worldwide Company Profile

Euronet Worldwide, Inc provides electronic payment and transaction-processing services through a global network of automated teller machines, point-of-sale terminals, money-transfer locations and digital platforms. The company serves financial institutions, retailers, mobile operators, money-transfer agents and consumers.

Euronet operates through three primary business areas: EFT Processing, which includes ATM services, electronic payment processing and related financial technology; epay, which distributes prepaid mobile airtime, gift cards and other electronic payment products; and Money Transfer, which provides international and domestic remittance services through the Ria Money Transfer and xe brands, among others.

Headquartered in Leawood, Kansas, Euronet was founded in 1994 and initially focused on developing ATM networks in Central Europe before expanding into broader payment-processing and money-transfer services.

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