Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $127.13.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup downgraded Euronet Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $118.00 to $110.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $136.00 price target on shares of Euronet Worldwide in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Euronet Worldwide from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Euronet Worldwide from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on shares of Euronet Worldwide from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Kevin J. Caponecchi sold 52,034 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Martin L. Bruckner sold 9,397 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 39,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,290,575.73. This trade represents a 19.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 10.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Euronet Worldwide

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in Euronet Worldwide in the second quarter valued at $57,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Euronet Worldwide in the 2nd quarter valued at about $80,000. Mendota Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Euronet Worldwide in the 3rd quarter valued at about $100,000. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 21.6% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,087 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $108,000 after buying an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Euronet Worldwide during the third quarter worth about $109,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.60% of the company’s stock.

Euronet Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EEFT opened at $103.39 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $101.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $103.01. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $4.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.44. Euronet Worldwide has a 52 week low of $89.30 and a 52 week high of $117.66.

Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ:EEFT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.92 by $0.11. Euronet Worldwide had a net margin of 8.49% and a return on equity of 26.86%. The company had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.53 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Euronet Worldwide will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.