Argus Downgrades Equifax (NYSE:EFX) to Hold

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) was downgraded by Argus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports.

EFX has been the subject of several other research reports. BNP Paribas raised Equifax from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Equifax from $284.00 to $281.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Equifax in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Equifax from $340.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $301.69.

Equifax Price Performance

NYSE EFX opened at $254.54 on Tuesday. Equifax has a twelve month low of $213.02 and a twelve month 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 stock has a market capitalization of $31.55 billion, a PE ratio of 52.70, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.58. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $260.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $274.55.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.12. Equifax had a return on equity of 19.13% and a net margin of 10.63%. Research analysts anticipate that Equifax will post 7.45 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Equifax news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total value of $143,474.89. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,045,781.83. This trade represents a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Greenleaf Trust boosted its position in Equifax by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,702 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $434,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its position in Equifax by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 1,012 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $258,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its position in Equifax by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 817 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $208,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its position in Equifax by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 371 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $109,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Equifax by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 879 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during 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.