Equifax (NYSE:EFX) PT Lowered to $350.00

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) had its target price lowered by Wells Fargo & Company from $375.00 to $350.00 in a report issued on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

EFX has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Wolfe Research started coverage on Equifax in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Equifax from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. UBS Group began coverage on Equifax in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $360.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Equifax from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Equifax from $250.00 to $271.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $310.47.

Equifax Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:EFX opened at $282.05 on Friday. Equifax has a twelve month low of $159.95 and a twelve month high of $309.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $294.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $262.95.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The credit services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.44 billion. Equifax had a net margin of 10.67% and a return on equity of 18.88%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.76 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Equifax will post 7.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Carla Chaney sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.85, for a total transaction of $845,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,065,118.75. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equifax

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Conning Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Equifax by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 848 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Equifax by 1.2% during the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 3,726 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $903,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Equifax by 0.3% during the second quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc. now owns 15,464 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,749,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equifax by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 1,038 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $278,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equifax by 76.1% in the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Equifax Company Profile

Equifax Inc operates as a data, analytics, and technology company. The company operates through three segments: Workforce Solutions, U.S. Information Solutions (USIS), and International. The Workforce Solutions segment offers services that enables customers to verify income, employment, educational history, criminal justice data, healthcare professional licensure, and sanctions of people in the United States; and employer customers with services that assist them in complying with and automating payroll-related and human resource management processes throughout the entire cycle of the employment relationship.