Looking around for a great investing idea in such deteriorating conditions can prove to be difficult… or maybe one has to think in simpler terms. It is important to address the basics of business operations and exploit areas where IT can battle the productivity lost to layoffs. The financial sector has seen an increasing amount of layoffs not only in the front office but also in the middle and back office. I would like to point out that one of the first places businesses cut jobs is in Operations and Technology businesses. These functions are non-revenue generating functions and are often seen as excess baggage within corporations during hard times. Fiserv (FISV: 43.83, 0.00 (0.00%)), seems to provide a great substitute to fill the void left by the IT and operations personnel.

Operational Environment

Fiserv provides integrated information management systems and services to it’s large portfolio of clients. FISV’s offerings include transaction processing, eCommerce services, business process outsourcing (BPO), and other software solutions. The company serves over 18,000 financial clients ranging from depository institutions to both public and private companies. Operating in three segments: Financial, Insurances, and CheckFree, FISV reported an EPS of $0.60 last quarter with revenues totaling $1295 million, a 38% growth from the previous year. Analyst’s remain bullish on FISV going forward with data from Reuters citing an EPS of $3.34 for the current fiscal year. FISV’s competitors include Fidelity National Information Services (FIS: 17.04, 0.00 (0.00%)) and Total System Services (TSS: 15.46, 0.00 (0.00%)), both of who provide poor growth and weak earnings.