Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) Shares Acquired by Metis Global Partners LLC

Metis Global Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 4.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,415 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Equifax were worth $1,591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Conning Inc. boosted its position in shares of Equifax by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 848 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $206,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Equifax by 1.2% in the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 3,726 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $903,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC increased its stake in Equifax by 13.5% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 371 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Equifax by 0.3% during the second quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc. now owns 15,464 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,749,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust lifted its position in shares of Equifax by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,665 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $489,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Trading Down 5.3 %

NYSE EFX opened at $248.27 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.59. Equifax Inc. has a 52-week low of $197.13 and a 52-week high of $309.63. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $282.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $267.22.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The credit services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.01. Equifax had a return on equity of 18.56% and a net margin of 10.07%. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.76 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Equifax Inc. will post 7.29 EPS for the current year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders 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 0.63%. Equifax’s payout ratio is currently 34.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EFX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Equifax from $300.00 to $304.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Equifax from $250.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. UBS Group began coverage on Equifax in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $360.00 target price for the company. Citigroup raised their price target on Equifax from $263.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Equifax from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $310.47.

Insider Transactions at Equifax

In other Equifax news, EVP John J. Kelley III sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.92, for a total transaction 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 represents a 8.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 58,304 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.49, for a total transaction of $15,770,648.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 109,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,532,909.67. The trade was a 34.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Equifax 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.