Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Purchases 2,069 Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 39,048 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,069 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Equifax were worth $9,952,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Equifax by 76,913.8% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 960,362 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $282,212,000 after buying an additional 959,115 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Equifax by 37.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,233,744 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $950,268,000 after acquiring an additional 880,162 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Equifax by 34.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 863,718 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $251,480,000 after purchasing an additional 220,109 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Equifax by 5,123.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 115,114 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $33,827,000 after purchasing an additional 112,910 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Equifax by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 767,136 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $225,431,000 after purchasing an additional 88,895 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on EFX shares. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Equifax in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $360.00 price target on the stock. Wolfe Research lowered Equifax from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $350.00 price objective on shares of Equifax in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Equifax from $340.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $311.12.

Equifax Stock Performance

EFX stock opened at $275.00 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $259.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $274.65. 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 $213.02 and a 12-month high of $309.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.09 billion, a PE ratio of 61.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.57.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total value of $143,474.89. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,045,781.83. This trade represents a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Equifax Profile

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.