This Payments Stock Is Down 24% but One Value Fund Just Lifted Its Bet on Shares to $15 Million

On Tuesday, New York-based Value Holdings Management disclosed a buy of 98,289 shares of Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ:EEFT), an estimated $7.66 million trade based on quarterly average pricing.

What happened

According to an SEC filing released Wednesday, Value Holdings Management increased its stake in Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ:EEFT) by 98,289 shares during the fourth quarter. The estimated transaction value, calculated using the average closing price for the quarter, was $7.66 million. The quarter-end value of the position rose by $6.33 million, reflecting both the additional shares and market price changes.

What else to know

The buy brings the Euronet Worldwide position to 2.5% of the fund's 13F reportable AUM.

Top holdings after the filing:

• NYSE:EME: $60.98 million (10.2% of AUM)
• NYSE:ROL: $56.37 million (9.4% of AUM)
• NYSE:PRIM: $53.34 million (8.9% of AUM)
• NYSE:WAB: $49.71 million (8.3% of AUM)
• NASDAQ:MKSI: $47.58 million (8.0% of AUM)

As of Tuesday, EEFT shares were priced at $74.03, down 24.6% over the past year and well underperforming the S&P 500's roughly 17% gain in the same period.

Company overview

Company snapshot

• Euronet Worldwide offers electronic payment solutions, ATM and POS management, prepaid mobile airtime distribution, money transfer, and related transaction processing services globally.
• The company generates revenue through transaction fees, outsourcing services, and commissions from a broad network of ATMs, POS terminals, and money transfer locations.
• It serves financial institutions, retailers, merchants, agents, content providers, and individual consumers across international markets.

Euronet Worldwide, Inc. operates at scale with a global footprint in electronic payments and transaction processing, leveraging a network of over 50,000 ATMs and hundreds of thousands of POS and money transfer locations. The company's diversified business model spans electronic fund transfers, prepaid product distribution, and consumer money transfer, supporting consistent fee-based revenue streams. Euronet's competitive edge lies in its integrated technology platform and broad service offering, enabling it to address the evolving needs of financial institutions and retail partners worldwide.

What this transaction means for investors

What matters here is not the timing but the tolerance for uneven sentiment. Adding to a company that has materially lagged the broader market signals confidence in earnings durability rather than price momentum. That fits neatly with how this portfolio is constructed. Its largest positions skew toward industrials and recurring-revenue operators with operational leverage, not headline growth stories, and this buy sits comfortably in that mold.

Euronet’s most recent quarter showed why patience is required. Revenue rose 4% year over year to about $1.15 billion while operating income climbed 7%. Meanwhile, adjusted EBITDA increased 8%, and adjusted earnings per share jumped 19% to $3.62. The business continues to generate cash at scale, ending the quarter with more than $1.1 billion in unrestricted cash and access to roughly $1.8 billion in revolving credit capacity.

Management acknowledged it anticipated better revenues in the quarter, but the stock’s underperformance seemingly reflects macro pressure and this uneven segment growth rather than balance sheet stress. Plus, EFT processing and digital money transfer volumes continue to expand, and management reiterated expectations for full-year adjusted EPS growth of 12% to 16% -- though it mentioned unforeseen factors, particularly those pertaining to foreign exchange rates or interest rates, could well impact that outlook.

Jonathan Ponciano has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends EMCOR Group, Euronet Worldwide, Rollins, and Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.