FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) Price Target Lowered to $243.00 at Royal Bank Of Canada

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) had its price objective decreased by Royal Bank Of Canada from $320.00 to $243.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Royal Bank Of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on FDS. Zacks Research raised FactSet Research Systems from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $372.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $215.00 to $195.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Evercore increased their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $320.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, FactSet Research Systems presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $285.69.

FactSet Research Systems Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FDS opened at $207.93 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $234.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $273.08. FactSet Research Systems has a 1-year low of $185.00 and a 1-year high of $474.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The business services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.36 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $607.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $599.69 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 25.40% and a return on equity of 30.49%. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.37 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that FactSet Research Systems will post 17.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to reacquire up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

FactSet Research Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. FactSet Research Systems’s payout ratio is 27.99%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other FactSet Research Systems news, Director Malcolm Frank sold 2,572 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.70, for a total transaction of $760,540.40. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $259,920.30. This trade represents a 74.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Laurie Siegel sold 2,572 shares of FactSet Research Systems stock in a transaction on 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 directly owned 1,037 shares in the company, valued at $307,211.25. This represents a 71.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FactSet Research Systems

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 444,058.1% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 13,857,733 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,021,376,000 after buying an additional 13,854,613 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 2.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,932,382 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,413,078,000 after acquiring an additional 107,184 shares in the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY increased its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 58.8% during the fourth quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 2,888,845 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $838,314,000 after acquiring an additional 1,069,786 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 1.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,961,231 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $561,873,000 after acquiring an additional 23,660 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P lifted its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 1.6% during the second quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 1,508,052 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $674,522,000 after acquiring an additional 23,900 shares during the period. 91.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.