Equifax (NYSE:EFX) EVP Jamil Farshchi Sells 15,110 Shares of Company Stock

Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX) EVP Jamil Farshchi sold 15,110 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.77, for a total value of $2,867,424.70. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 39,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,456,063.30. This represents a 27.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Equifax Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:EFX traded down $1.60 on Thursday, hitting $186.81. The company had a trading volume of 823,214 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,753,042. Equifax, Inc. has a 1-year low of $137.01 and a 1-year high of $228.67. The stock has a market cap of $21.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $166.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The credit services provider reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.69 billion. Equifax had a net margin of 11.27% and a return on equity of 22.48%. Equifax’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.04 EPS. Analysts expect that Equifax, Inc. will post 8.50 EPS for the current year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 25th will be issued a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 25th. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on EFX. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Equifax from $245.00 to $232.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Citigroup reduced their price target on Equifax from $238.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Equifax in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Equifax in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Credit Suisse Group set a $160.00 price objective on Equifax in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $200.55.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equifax

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AlphaGrep UK Ltd lifted its position in shares of Equifax by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaGrep UK Ltd now owns 3,901 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $535,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in Equifax by 46.6% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 28,698 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,939,000 after purchasing an additional 9,118 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Equifax in the third quarter valued at about $571,000. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Equifax during the third quarter worth about $166,000. Finally, Focus Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its position in Equifax by 76.7% during the third quarter. Focus Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 12,032 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,651,000 after purchasing an additional 5,224 shares during the period. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equifax Company Profile

Equifax Inc. is a global data, analytics and technology company best known as one of the major consumer credit reporting agencies in the United States. The company traces its history to 1899, when it was founded as the Retail Credit Company, and adopted the Equifax name in 1975. Equifax provides consumer and business credit information, credit reports and scores, and tools for identity verification and fraud prevention. Its products also help businesses assess risk and make decisions about lending, customer relationships and marketing.