Meritage Portfolio Management Sells 3,701 Shares of Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT)

Meritage Portfolio Management lessened its holdings in Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT - Free Report) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 126,679 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 3,701 shares during the period. Euronet Worldwide comprises 0.8% of Meritage Portfolio Management's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Meritage Portfolio Management owned 0.29% of Euronet Worldwide worth $13,028,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Euronet Worldwide by 45.8% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 716,539 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $71,102,000 after purchasing an additional 224,982 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Euronet Worldwide in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $15,258,000. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 13.6% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 1,064,233 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $105,604,000 after acquiring an additional 127,240 shares in the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. increased its position in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 8.5% during the third quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 606,325 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $60,166,000 after acquiring an additional 47,469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in Euronet Worldwide during the third quarter worth $4,373,000. Institutional investors own 91.60% of the company's stock.

Euronet Worldwide Stock Performance

EEFT stock traded down $0.25 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $96.98. 270,764 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 235,070. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a PE ratio of 14.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $101.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $100.90. Euronet Worldwide, Inc. has a 52 week low of $91.07 and a 52 week high of $117.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on EEFT. Citigroup downgraded Euronet Worldwide from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $118.00 to $110.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Euronet Worldwide from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 20th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of Euronet Worldwide in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of Euronet Worldwide from $135.00 to $128.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Euronet Worldwide from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $127.14.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Nikos Fountas sold 21,479 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.56, for a total value of $2,224,365.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 52,370 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,423,437.20. This trade represents a 29.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kevin J. Caponecchi sold 52,034 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.61, for a total transaction of $5,547,344.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 90,288 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,625,603.68. This represents a 36.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 82,910 shares of company stock worth $8,780,102 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 10.50% of the company's stock.

Euronet Worldwide Company Profile

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.