Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) Receives $310.41 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and fifteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $301.69.

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Equifax from $340.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Equifax in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Argus downgraded Equifax from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wolfe Research cut shares of Equifax from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Equifax from $335.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total value of $143,474.89. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EFX. Greenleaf Trust increased its position in Equifax by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,702 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $434,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equifax by 4.2% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC grew its holdings in Equifax by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 817 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its position in Equifax by 13.5% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 371 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Equifax by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 879 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Stock Up 0.1 %

EFX stock opened at $253.16 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $260.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $274.69. Equifax has a 12 month low of $213.02 and a 12 month high of $309.63. The company has a market cap of $31.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.41, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.58.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12. Equifax had a return on equity of 19.13% and a net margin of 10.63%. As a group, analysts forecast that Equifax will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Equifax’s payout ratio is 32.30%.

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.