Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Buys Shares of 45,955 Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 45,955 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $9,440,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC lifted its position in Fiserv by 17.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,442,476 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,696,341,000 after acquiring an additional 1,427,664 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC bought a new stake in Fiserv during the third quarter worth about $764,543,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Fiserv by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,711,072 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $762,328,000 after buying an additional 164,949 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Fiserv by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,620,785 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $743,782,000 after purchasing an additional 90,475 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Fiserv in the fourth quarter worth $614,982,000. Institutional investors own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of Fiserv stock opened at $218.05 on Tuesday. Fiserv, Inc. has a 12-month low of $145.98 and a 12-month high of $238.59. The company has a market cap of $122.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.45, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $219.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $205.19.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.03. Fiserv had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 17.93%. On average, equities analysts expect that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fiserv declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 20th that allows the company to buyback 60,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Fiserv

In related news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $53,637,326.05. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on FI shares. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Fiserv from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Fiserv from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Fiserv from $208.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Fiserv from $235.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fiserv presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $239.83.

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.