Lazard Asset Management LLC Sells 24,224 Shares of Euronet Worldwide, Inc. $EEFT

Key Points

• Lazard Asset Management reduced its Euronet Worldwide stake by 61.7% in the first quarter, selling 24,224 shares and retaining 15,025 shares valued at approximately $997,000. Institutional investors collectively own 91.6% of the company.
• Euronet reported quarterly EPS of $2.82, below the $2.93 consensus estimate, while revenue increased 3.2% year over year. Analysts expect full-year EPS of $9.83.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $96, compared with the stock’s recent price of $74.27. Director Thomas A. McDonnell separately bought 3,000 shares at an average price of $66.87.

Lazard Asset Management LLC cut its position in Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT - Free Report) by 61.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 15,025 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 24,224 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Euronet Worldwide were worth $997,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 48.4% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 334 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Euronet Worldwide by 0.4% during the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 34,035 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,450,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in Euronet Worldwide by 23.6% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 775 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC grew its stake in Euronet Worldwide by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 8,748 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $666,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 10,817 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $823,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. 91.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Euronet Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EEFT opened at $74.27 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $73.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $71.58. The firm has a market cap of $2.83 billion, a PE ratio of 11.66, a PEG ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. Euronet Worldwide, Inc. has a 1-year low of $62.50 and a 1-year high of $98.52.

Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ:EEFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.93 by ($0.11). Euronet Worldwide had a net margin of 6.63% and a return on equity of 28.60%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.56 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Euronet Worldwide, Inc. will post 9.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Euronet Worldwide

In other news, Director Thomas A. Mcdonnell bought 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $66.87 per share, for a total transaction of $200,610.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 100,219 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,701,644.53. The trade was a 3.09% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 12.19% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EEFT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Euronet Worldwide in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on Euronet Worldwide from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Euronet Worldwide from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $96.00.

Euronet Worldwide Company Profile

Euronet Worldwide, Inc is a global financial technology company specializing in electronic payment services and transaction processing. Through its three primary business segments—Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Network Services, epay® Prepaid and Payment Services, and Money Transfer—Euronet provides end-to-end solutions that enable secure, efficient and convenient payments for consumers, financial institutions and retailers worldwide.

In its EFT Network Services arm, Euronet operates one of the world's largest ATM and point-of-sale (POS) terminal networks, offering deployment, management and connectivity services.

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