FactSet Research Systems Inc. $FDS Position Reduced by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. reduced its position in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) by 74.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 27,455 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 79,664 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.07% of FactSet Research Systems worth $7,967,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in FactSet Research Systems by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 6,866 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,071,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Claret Asset Management Corp lifted its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 7.0% in the second quarter. Claret Asset Management Corp now owns 532 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $238,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Aurora Investment Managers LLC. boosted its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Aurora Investment Managers LLC. now owns 3,928 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,140,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 3.3% in the third quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 1,145 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $328,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 53.4% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 112 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.24% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at FactSet Research Systems

In other news, Director Laurie Siegel sold 2,572 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.25, for a total transaction of $761,955.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,037 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $307,211.25. This represents a 71.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Malcolm Frank sold 2,572 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.70, for a total value of $760,540.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $259,920.30. This trade represents a 74.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

FactSet Research Systems Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:FDS opened at $198.64 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.37 billion, a PE ratio of 12.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.75. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a 1 year low of $185.00 and a 1 year high of $474.79. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $222.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $264.77.

FactSet Research Systems announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, December 18th that permits the company to buyback $600.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

FactSet Research Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th were paid a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 27th. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio is 27.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on FDS shares. Raymond James Financial reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Barclays decreased their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $300.00 to $210.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Monday, December 29th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $305.00 price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Friday, December 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $285.69.

About FactSet Research Systems

FactSet Research Systems Inc operates as a global provider of integrated financial data and analytics to the investment community. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, the company offers a unified platform that aggregates content from thousands of sources, delivering real-time and historical market data, company fundamentals, estimates, fixed-income information and proprietary analytics to portfolio managers, research analysts, investment bankers and risk officers.

The company’s core products include the FactSet Workstation, an application offering customizable screening, charting, portfolio analysis and news; APIs and data feeds for seamless integration into proprietary systems; and cloud-based solutions for thematic research and quantitative strategies.