Quantbot Technologies LP Increases Stock Holdings in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its holdings in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 5.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,630 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 182 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Equifax were worth $1,067,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFX. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of Equifax by 4.9% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,276,798 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,036,952,000 after acquiring an additional 200,665 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Equifax by 37.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,233,744 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $950,268,000 after buying an additional 880,162 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Equifax by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 3,044,561 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $738,184,000 after buying an additional 70,091 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Equifax by 76,913.8% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 960,362 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $282,212,000 after buying an additional 959,115 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Equifax by 13.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 767,136 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $225,431,000 after acquiring an additional 88,895 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EFX opened at $261.56 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $273.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $268.50. Equifax Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $213.02 and a fifty-two week high of $309.63. The firm has a market cap of $32.42 billion, a PE ratio of 58.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The credit services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.01. Equifax had a net margin of 10.07% and a return on equity of 18.56%. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.76 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Equifax Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Equifax’s payout ratio is 34.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP John J. Kelley III sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.92, for a total value of $272,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,075,535.48. This trade represents a 8.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total transaction of $143,474.89. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,045,781.83. This represents a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 59,855 shares of company stock worth $16,187,044. Corporate insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on EFX shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Equifax from $305.00 to $284.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company restated a “buy” rating on shares of Equifax in a report on Friday, October 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Equifax from $304.00 to $283.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Equifax from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $310.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Equifax presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $306.74.

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.