Birch Capital Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Birch Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 22,091 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the quarter. Fiserv comprises approximately 2.3% of Birch Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Birch Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Fiserv were worth $4,538,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FI. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new stake in Fiserv in the second quarter worth $60,000. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Fiserv by 4.4% in the second quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 20,821 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,103,000 after purchasing an additional 881 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC increased its holdings in Fiserv by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 17,913 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,670,000 after purchasing an additional 567 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its holdings in Fiserv by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 1,910 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $285,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Finally, Caprock Group LLC grew its position in shares of Fiserv by 15.9% in the 2nd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 15,250 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,273,000 after buying an additional 2,090 shares during the last quarter. 90.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on FI. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $180.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $255.00 target price on shares of Fiserv in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Fiserv from $222.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Fiserv from $186.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $222.88.

Fiserv Price Performance

NYSE:FI traded down $1.19 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $204.44. 1,153,443 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,624,240. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $209.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $183.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $116.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.93. Fiserv, Inc. has a 1 year low of $133.66 and a 1 year high of $223.23.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.26 by $0.04. Fiserv had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 15.22%. The company had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.96 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Fiserv, Inc. will post 8.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fiserv

In related news, Director Doyle Simons sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.97, for a total value of $8,078,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 76,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,386,074.60. This trade represents a 34.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Heidi Miller sold 30,000 shares of Fiserv stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.13, for a total transaction of $6,033,900.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 33,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,684,555.55. This represents a 47.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 90,821 shares of company stock valued at $18,581,095 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Fiserv Company 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.