Biltmore Family Office LLC Boosts Stock Position in Equifax, Inc. $EFX

Biltmore Family Office LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 32.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,426 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,750 shares during the quarter. Equifax comprises 0.9% of Biltmore Family Office LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Biltmore Family Office LLC’s holdings in Equifax were worth $6,009,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Equifax by 1.8% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,966,903 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,881,966,000 after purchasing an additional 258,572 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Equifax by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,968,897 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,288,783,000 after buying an additional 66,914 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Equifax by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,142,763 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $811,650,000 after buying an additional 75,627 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its position in Equifax by 8.9% during the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,726,990 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $447,928,000 after buying an additional 140,427 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Equifax in the 2nd quarter worth $334,521,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EFX opened at $209.71 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $215.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $231.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.74. Equifax, Inc. has a 12 month low of $199.98 and a 12 month high of $281.07.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 24th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 24th. Equifax’s payout ratio is presently 37.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Equifax news, EVP Jamil Farshchi sold 4,925 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.94, for a total value of $1,176,779.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,405,634.16. This represents a 11.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 21,386 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.12, for a total value of $4,942,732.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 22,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,095,040.40. This trade represents a 49.24% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 54,270 shares of company stock worth $12,580,837. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EFX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Seaport Research Partners upgraded shares of Equifax to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Equifax from $285.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on Equifax from $271.00 to $266.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Equifax from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on Equifax from $285.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Equifax presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $271.14.

Equifax Company Profile

Equifax Inc (NYSE: EFX) is a global data, analytics and technology company that specializes in consumer and commercial credit reporting, decisioning tools and identity solutions. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Equifax is one of the three major consumer credit reporting agencies in the United States and provides credit information and related services to lenders, employers, governments and consumers worldwide.

The company’s offerings include consumer credit reports and scores, credit monitoring and identity protection services, and a range of business-oriented products for risk management, fraud detection and compliance.