Freestone Grove Partners LP Takes Position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 3,326 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $683,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FI. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,891,207 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,435,280,000 after purchasing an additional 218,833 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Fiserv by 22.5% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,568,895 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,376,482,000 after acquiring an additional 2,126,419 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 8,030,889 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,649,705,000 after acquiring an additional 1,121,597 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv in the 4th quarter worth about $1,406,452,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Fiserv by 19.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,206,720 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,274,984,000 after purchasing an additional 1,014,126 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.98% of the company's stock.

Fiserv Price Performance

Shares of FI stock traded down $2.75 on Wednesday, hitting $182.20. 3,483,124 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,817,252. The firm has a market cap of $101.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.80, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $209.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $211.46. Fiserv, Inc. has a 52 week low of $146.25 and a 52 week high of $238.59.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $2.14 EPS 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 business had revenue of $4.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.86 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.88 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fiserv announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 20th that authorizes the company to buyback 60,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FI. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Fiserv in a research note on Sunday, March 23rd. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Fiserv from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Piper Sandler set a $218.00 price target on Fiserv in a report on Friday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Fiserv from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $246.00 to $260.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of Fiserv from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $145.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fiserv currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $230.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.55, for a total value of $10,599,750.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 227,711 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.74% of the company's stock.

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.