FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) Given Consensus Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) have earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the nine ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and five have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $436.90.

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on FDS shares. UBS Group cut their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $525.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of FactSet Research Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $450.00 to $402.00 in a report on Friday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $503.00 price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Monday, March 10th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $469.00 to $493.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th.

FactSet Research Systems Price Performance

FactSet Research Systems stock opened at $425.93 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.16 billion, a PE ratio of 30.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.82. FactSet Research Systems has a 52 week low of $391.69 and a 52 week high of $499.87. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $444.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $462.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The business services provider reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.17 by $0.11. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 24.16% and a return on equity of 33.92%. The business had revenue of $570.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $570.65 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.22 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that FactSet Research Systems will post 17.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.59%.

Insider Transactions at FactSet Research Systems

In other news, CAO Gregory T. Moskoff sold 363 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $433.73, for a total transaction of $157,443.99. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 44 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,084.12. This represents a 89.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,096,592 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $527,411,000 after buying an additional 94,668 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 505,587 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $240,184,000 after purchasing an additional 16,522 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 501,068 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $240,653,000 after purchasing an additional 7,718 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 456,149 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $219,079,000 after purchasing an additional 66,861 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 40,436.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 430,089 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $195,536,000 after acquiring an additional 429,028 shares during the period. 91.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About FactSet Research Systems

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.