Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $294.44.

EFX has been the topic of a number of research reports. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Equifax in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Barclays reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $260.00 target price (down from $325.00) on shares of Equifax in a report on Friday, April 4th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $295.00 price target on shares of Equifax in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Equifax from $288.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Equifax from $335.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th.

Equifax Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EFX opened at $263.39 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $32.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.68. Equifax has a 52-week low of $199.98 and a 52-week high of $309.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.75. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $245.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $252.83.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The credit services provider reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. Equifax had a return on equity of 19.13% and a net margin of 10.63%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Equifax will post 7.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This is a positive change from Equifax’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Equifax’s payout ratio is 40.90%.

Insider Transactions at Equifax

In other Equifax news, EVP John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.10, for a total value of $518,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 65,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,887,101.60. This represents a 2.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 22,160 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.61, for a total value of $5,686,477.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 142,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,539,980.95. This trade represents a 13.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equifax

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Equifax during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in Equifax by 1,920.0% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 101 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Equifax in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Equifax during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC grew its position in shares of Equifax by 505.0% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 121 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Equifax

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.