Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases 669 Shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS)

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) by 5.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,314 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 669 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in FactSet Research Systems were worth $5,687,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 2,873.9% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 119,582 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $48,822,000 after purchasing an additional 115,561 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in FactSet Research Systems in the third quarter valued at about $38,909,000. State Street Corp grew its position in FactSet Research Systems by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,932,376 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $888,603,000 after acquiring an additional 42,303 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 21.5% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 235,387 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $96,113,000 after acquiring an additional 41,717 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 9.3% in the third quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 296,329 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $136,267,000 after acquiring an additional 25,294 shares during the last quarter. 91.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued an “inline” rating and a $470.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $435.00 to $503.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $521.00 to $518.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $503.00 target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $373.00 to $409.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $453.46.

Insider Transactions at FactSet Research Systems

In other news, insider John Costigan sold 1,622 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $481.00, for a total value of $780,182.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 299 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $143,819. The trade was a 84.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Christopher R. Ellis sold 13,952 shares of FactSet Research Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.15, for a total value of $6,364,204.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,515 shares in the company, valued at $10,726,367.25. This trade represents a 37.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 23,984 shares of company stock worth $10,981,107. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

FactSet Research Systems Stock Performance

FactSet Research Systems stock opened at $489.34 on Tuesday. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $391.84 and a fifty-two week high of $499.87. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $478.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $444.03. The stock has a market cap of $18.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $4.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.25 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $568.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $565.14 million. FactSet Research Systems had a return on equity of 34.77% and a net margin of 24.38%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.12 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.82%.

FactSet Research Systems Company Profile

FactSet Research Systems Inc, a financial data company, provides integrated financial information and analytical applications to the investment community in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company delivers insight and information through the workflow solutions of research, analytics and trading, content and technology solutions, and wealth.