Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $125.86.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on EEFT. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Euronet Worldwide in a report on Friday, February 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Euronet Worldwide from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com downgraded Euronet Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on Euronet Worldwide from $135.00 to $128.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th.

Insider Activity at Euronet Worldwide

In related news, CEO Michael J. Brown sold 95,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.69, for a total value of $9,565,550.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,418,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $142,875,686.54. This trade represents a 6.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 10.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Euronet Worldwide

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in EEFT. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Euronet Worldwide in the 4th quarter worth approximately $58,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Euronet Worldwide by 40.9% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 713 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 15,240.0% in the fourth quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 767 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 762 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Euronet Worldwide by 485.6% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 855 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $88,000 after acquiring an additional 709 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in Euronet Worldwide during the 1st quarter worth about $97,000. 91.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Euronet Worldwide Stock Performance

EEFT opened at $94.45 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $101.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $101.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market cap of $4.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.60, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.18. Euronet Worldwide has a 1-year low of $85.24 and a 1-year high of $117.66.

Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ:EEFT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($0.23). Euronet Worldwide had a return on equity of 27.74% and a net margin of 7.69%. Equities analysts forecast that Euronet Worldwide will post 9.11 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.