Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) Shares Purchased by Intech Investment Management LLC

Intech Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 84.1% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 6,861 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,135 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Equifax were worth $2,016,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of EFX. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI purchased a new stake in Equifax in the 3rd quarter worth $238,000. Moran Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equifax by 0.4% during the third quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 42,863 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $12,596,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Equifax in the third quarter valued at approximately $9,944,000. NS Partners Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Equifax by 2.3% in the third quarter. NS Partners Ltd now owns 95,010 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $27,920,000 after acquiring an additional 2,094 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Equifax during the third quarter worth $1,175,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE:EFX opened at $253.58 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $277.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $268.19. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Equifax Inc. has a 12-month low of $208.67 and a 12-month high of $309.63. The firm has a market cap of $31.43 billion, a PE ratio of 56.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.59.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The credit services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.01. Equifax had a net margin of 10.07% and a return on equity of 18.56%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.76 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Equifax Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.67%.

Insider Transactions at Equifax

In other Equifax news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 58,304 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 109,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,532,909.67. This trade represents a 34.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John J. Kelley III sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.92, for a total value of $272,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,269 shares in the company, valued at $3,075,535.48. This trade represents a 8.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EFX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Equifax from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Equifax in a research note on Friday, October 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Equifax from $304.00 to $283.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays raised their price objective on Equifax from $300.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Equifax from $305.00 to $284.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $306.74.

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.