LPL Financial LLC Increases Holdings in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS)

LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) by 6.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 75,986 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,283 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.20% of FactSet Research Systems worth $36,494,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of FactSet Research Systems in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 137 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 5,200.0% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 159 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in FactSet Research Systems by 19.2% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 205 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $99,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems in the 4th quarter worth about $102,000. 91.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Gregory T. Moskoff sold 363 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $433.73, for a total value of $157,443.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 44 shares in the company, valued at $19,084.12. This trade represents a 89.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

FactSet Research Systems Price Performance

Shares of FDS opened at $449.16 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.08 billion, a PE ratio of 32.20, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $454.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $464.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.39. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $391.84 and a fifty-two week high of $499.87.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The business services provider reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.17 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $570.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $570.65 million. FactSet Research Systems had a return on equity of 33.92% and a net margin of 24.16%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.22 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $503.00 price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut FactSet Research Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $450.00 to $402.00 in a report on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $409.00 to $390.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $525.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, FactSet Research Systems has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $436.27.

About FactSet Research Systems

FactSet Research Systems Inc, a financial data company, provides integrated financial information and analytical applications to the investment community in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company delivers insight and information through the workflow solutions of research, analytics and trading, content and technology solutions, and wealth.