Jana Urges Fiserv to Set $1.25B Savings Target

Jana Partners sent a letter to Fiserv's board urging it to raise Project Elevate's cost-savings target from $500 million to $1.25 billion by 2029 and announce the higher target with third-quarter earnings. Jana wrote: "As Fiserv enters the second year of the Elevate plan, we believe the board should commit to a larger cost reduction target that will have a significant impact on net profit, and explicitly use Palantir to drive accountability to ensure the opportunity for value creation doesn't fall victim to business-as-usual inertia." It also wants Fiserv to adopt Palantir software to cut tech debt and legacy vendor costs. Fiserv shares hit their lowest close since February 2016 on September 23 as market value more than halved over 12 months to about $25 billion. Jana, invested since late 2025, urged a full portfolio review two months earlier. CEO Takis Georgakopoulos, who began in June, said Fiserv is reviewing its businesses and may pursue divestitures following July reports of a possible debit-card payments infrastructure sale. Jana previously pushed FIS to spin off Worldpay in 2024. Reuters obtained the letter. No facts are contested across outlets; whether Fiserv adopts the targets remains open.