318,023 Shares in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) Purchased by River Road Asset Management LLC

River Road Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 318,023 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $42,246,000. River Road Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Fiserv as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AMI Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Fiserv by 33.6% in the 1st quarter. AMI Investment Management Inc. now owns 27,999 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,839,000 after acquiring an additional 7,047 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 10.4% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 9,227 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $936,000 after purchasing an additional 870 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its position in shares of Fiserv by 158.2% during the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 963 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $98,000 after buying an additional 590 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC bought a new stake in Fiserv in the 1st quarter worth about $1,095,000. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Fiserv in the 1st quarter worth about $357,000. 90.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on FI. KeyCorp upgraded Fiserv from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $180.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of Fiserv from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Mizuho reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $156.00 price objective on shares of Fiserv in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, B. Riley raised their target price on shares of Fiserv from $152.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $158.21.

Fiserv Price Performance

Shares of Fiserv stock traded up $0.70 on Wednesday, reaching $147.10. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,937,020 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,507,063. Fiserv, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.11 and a 52-week high of $159.99. The company has a market capitalization of $86.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.28, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $151.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.95.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The business services provider reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.04. Fiserv had a net margin of 16.07% and a return on equity of 15.16%. The firm had revenue of $4.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.91 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Fiserv, Inc. will post 8.62 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 63,646 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.00, for a total transaction of $9,801,484.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 163,699 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,209,646. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 111,575 shares of company stock worth $17,022,387. 0.75% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fiserv Profile

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.