Franklin Resources Inc. Has $516.16 Million Stake in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Franklin Resources Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI - Free Report) by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,671,238 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 16,968 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.47% of Fiserv worth $516,163,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in FI. Clean Yield Group raised its holdings in shares of Fiserv by 431.3% during the 3rd quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 170 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the period. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Fiserv by 42.5% during the third quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 191 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Fiserv during the second quarter worth $31,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in shares of Fiserv during the third quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Fiserv during the 3rd quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on FI shares. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $183.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup increased their price target on Fiserv from $187.00 to $226.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $185.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Fiserv from $200.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Compass Point began coverage on shares of Fiserv in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $278.00 target price on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $217.50.

Fiserv Stock Performance

FI traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $204.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,536,167 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,530,050. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Fiserv, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $131.41 and a fifty-two week high of $223.23. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $205.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $176.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $116.43 billion, a PE ratio of 39.36, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.93.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.90 billion. Fiserv had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 15.22%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.96 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Fiserv, Inc. will post 8.77 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Fiserv

In other Fiserv news, Director Doyle Simons sold 40,000 shares of the business'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 sale, the director now directly owns 76,180 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,386,074.60. The trade was a 34.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Frank Bisignano sold 145,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.37, for a total transaction of $25,718,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,965,084 shares of the company's stock, valued at $525,916,949.08. The trade was a 4.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 235,821 shares of company stock valued at $44,299,745. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company's stock.

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.