Applied Finance Capital Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Key Points

• Applied Finance Capital Management LLC significantly reduced its stake in Fiserv, Inc. by 56.6%, owning 101,671 shares after selling 132,394 shares in the first quarter.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds currently own 90.98% of Fiserv's stock, indicating strong institutional confidence in the company.
• Fiserv's most recent earnings report showed an EPS of $2.47, exceeding expectations and reflecting an 8.0% year-over-year revenue growth.

Applied Finance Capital Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI - Free Report) by 56.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 101,671 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 132,394 shares during the quarter. Fiserv comprises about 1.7% of Applied Finance Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC's holdings in Fiserv were worth $22,452,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its stake in Fiserv by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 7,891 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,743,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the period. American National Bank & Trust increased its position in Fiserv by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 85,838 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $18,956,000 after purchasing an additional 1,983 shares during the period. Evercore Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Fiserv during the 4th quarter valued at about $54,981,000. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Fiserv by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 26,865 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,933,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046 shares during the period. Finally, Beck Mack & Oliver LLC increased its position in Fiserv by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Beck Mack & Oliver LLC now owns 513,402 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $105,463,000 after purchasing an additional 2,589 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.98% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on FI. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Fiserv in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on shares of Fiserv from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $237.00 price target on shares of Fiserv in a report on Friday, April 25th. Barclays set a $175.00 target price on shares of Fiserv and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded Fiserv from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fiserv presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $207.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fiserv

In related news, insider Adam L. Rosman sold 2,512 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.68, for a total value of $403,628.16. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 53,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,577,901.80. The trade was a 4.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Andrew Gelb sold 5,652 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $904,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 25,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,061,600. This trade represents a 18.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Fiserv Price Performance

NYSE FI traded down $0.46 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $142.04. The stock had a trading volume of 1,919,748 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,431,401. Fiserv, Inc. has a twelve month low of $128.22 and a twelve month high of $238.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The firm's 50 day moving average is $163.97 and its 200 day moving average is $194.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.71, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.91.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.43 by $0.04. Fiserv had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 19.69%. The firm had revenue of $5.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.