Hickory Point Bank & Trust Makes New $398,000 Investment in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Hickory Point Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 1,937 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $398,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Purkiss Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Fiserv in the 4th quarter worth about $1,462,000. Jacobi Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Fiserv by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 11,104 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,281,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Fiserv by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 23,253 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,777,000 after acquiring an additional 555 shares during the period. Williamson Legacy Group LLC grew its position in shares of Fiserv by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Williamson Legacy Group LLC now owns 6,020 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Fiserv during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $349,000. 90.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Fiserv Stock Performance

Fiserv stock opened at $235.67 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $216.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $201.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.06. The stock has a market cap of $132.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.94. Fiserv, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $145.98 and a fifty-two week high of $237.99.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 research analysts expect that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fiserv declared that its board has approved a stock buyback 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 reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.55, for a total transaction of $10,599,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 227,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,637,326.05. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FI has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Fiserv from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Fiserv from $258.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Fiserv from $235.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Compass Point initiated coverage on shares of Fiserv in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $278.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Fiserv from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.