Handelsbanken Fonder AB Grows Position in Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its stake in Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT) by 15.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,330 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Euronet Worldwide were worth $1,165,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 18,074 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,793,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 0.6% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 25,674 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,540,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its position in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 3.6% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 4,903 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $486,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 21.6% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,087 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $108,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 23,277 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,394,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. 91.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Euronet Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EEFT opened at $100.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.26. Euronet Worldwide, Inc. has a 1-year low of $91.07 and a 1-year high of $117.66. The business has a 50-day moving average of $100.79 and a 200-day moving average of $101.29. The company has a market capitalization of $4.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.60, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.43.

Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ:EEFT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($0.23). Euronet Worldwide had a return on equity of 27.74% and a net margin of 7.69%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Euronet Worldwide, Inc. will post 9.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EEFT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Euronet Worldwide in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Euronet Worldwide from $135.00 to $128.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com downgraded Euronet Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Euronet Worldwide from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Euronet Worldwide in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $127.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Euronet Worldwide

In other Euronet Worldwide news, CEO Nikos Fountas sold 21,479 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.56, for a total transaction of $2,224,365.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 52,370 shares in the company, valued at $5,423,437.20. This represents a 29.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 10.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Euronet Worldwide

Euronet Worldwide, Inc provides payment and transaction processing and distribution solutions to financial institutions, retailers, service providers, and individual consumers worldwide. It operates through three segments: Electronic Fund Transfer Processing, epay, and Money Transfer. The Electronic Fund Transfer Processing segment provides electronic payment solutions, including automated teller machine (ATM) cash withdrawal and deposit services, ATM network participation, outsourced ATM and point-of-sale (POS) management solutions, credit and debit and prepaid card outsourcing, card issuing, and merchant acquiring services.