Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $301.13.

Several research firms have issued reports on EFX. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Equifax from $321.00 to $313.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Equifax in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Equifax to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, UBS Group dropped 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 Down 0.3 %

NYSE:EFX opened at $244.38 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Equifax has a 1-year low of $213.02 and a 1-year high of $309.63. The company has a 50-day moving average of $255.86 and a 200 day moving average of $271.01. The firm has a market cap of $30.31 billion, a PE ratio of 50.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.58.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12. Equifax had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 19.13%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Equifax will post 7.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Equifax’s payout ratio is currently 32.30%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in Equifax in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,964,000. Integrated Advisors Network LLC increased its holdings in shares of Equifax by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 1,595 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $406,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Equifax during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in Equifax by 27.4% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 196,748 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $50,141,000 after purchasing an additional 42,308 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Equifax by 111.6% in the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,441 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $367,000 after purchasing an additional 760 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

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.