Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ:EEFT) Earns "Overweight" Rating from Stephens

Stephens reiterated their overweight rating on shares of Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ:EEFT - Free Report) in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $130.00 target price on the business services provider's stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Euronet Worldwide from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup lowered shares of Euronet Worldwide from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $118.00 to $110.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Euronet Worldwide in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on Euronet Worldwide from $135.00 to $128.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Euronet Worldwide from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Euronet Worldwide has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $127.00.

Euronet Worldwide Stock Performance

Euronet Worldwide stock traded up $5.24 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $109.88. The stock had a trading volume of 545,151 shares, compared to its average volume of 313,382. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.83 billion, a PE ratio of 15.88, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.43. Euronet Worldwide has a 12 month low of $91.07 and a 12 month high of $117.66. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $100.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $100.91.

Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ:EEFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 26.86% and a net margin of 8.49%. As a group, research analysts predict that Euronet Worldwide will post 7.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 stock was sold at an average price of $103.56, for a total transaction of $2,224,365.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 52,370 shares in the company, valued at $5,423,437.20. This trade represents a 29.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Martin L. Bruckner sold 9,397 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.31, for a total value of $1,008,392.07. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 39,983 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,290,575.73. The trade was a 19.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 82,910 shares of company stock worth $8,780,102 in the last 90 days. 10.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Euronet Worldwide

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EEFT. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Euronet Worldwide in the second quarter worth about $200,000. Ellsworth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 20.3% during the third quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 5,972 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $593,000 after buying an additional 1,007 shares during the period. Net Worth Advisory Group bought a new position in shares of Euronet Worldwide during the third quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Euronet Worldwide by 0.8% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 3,356,229 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $333,039,000 after acquiring an additional 27,254 shares during the period. Finally, Lecap Asset Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Euronet Worldwide by 113.4% in the third quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 5,018 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $498,000 after acquiring an additional 2,666 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.60% of the company's stock.

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.