Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, thirteen have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $292.00.

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Argus downgraded Equifax from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. UBS Group cut their target price on Equifax from $335.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $295.00 target price on shares of Equifax in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, BNP Paribas downgraded Equifax from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, March 14th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equifax

In other news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 22,160 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.61, for a total transaction of $5,686,477.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 142,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,539,980.95. This represents a 13.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.10, for a total value of $518,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 65,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,887,101.60. This trade represents a 2.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Equifax

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Equifax during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in shares of Equifax by 1,920.0% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 101 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Equifax during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Equifax during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its position in shares of Equifax by 505.0% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 121 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE:EFX opened at $278.84 on Friday. Equifax has a 12-month low of $199.98 and a 12-month high of $309.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $243.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $252.60.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The credit services provider reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.08. Equifax had a return on equity of 19.13% and a net margin of 10.63%. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Equifax will post 7.58 EPS for the current year.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.72%. This is an increase from Equifax’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Equifax’s payout ratio is 40.90%.

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.