Royal Bank of Canada Trims Stake in Equifax, Inc. $EFX

Royal Bank of Canada lessened its position in Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 14.7% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 272,649 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 47,050 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada’s holdings in Equifax were worth $49,095,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fisher Funds Management LTD purchased a new position in shares of Equifax during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,889,000. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equifax by 49.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,638 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $927,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in shares of Equifax by 52.6% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 650,391 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $141,199,000 after acquiring an additional 224,073 shares during the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan lifted its stake in shares of Equifax by 1,253.8% during the 4th quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 24,978 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,420,000 after acquiring an additional 23,133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in Equifax during the 1st quarter valued at $1,098,000. 96.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Chad M. Borton sold 2,455 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.89, for a total transaction of $426,899.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 29,518 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,132,885.02. This trade represents a 7.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 37,791 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.16, for a total transaction of $6,506,098.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 271,890 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,808,582.40. The trade was a 12.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Price Performance

Shares of EFX stock opened at $173.04 on Monday. Equifax, Inc. has a twelve month low of $150.74 and a twelve month high of $271.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $167.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $181.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.30.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The credit services provider reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.05. Equifax had a return on equity of 21.61% and a net margin of 10.73%.The firm had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.00 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equifax has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.150-2.250 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.390-8.690 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Equifax, Inc. will post 8.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were given a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EFX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on Equifax from $265.00 to $245.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Equifax from $243.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn reduced their price target on shares of Equifax from $226.00 to $214.00 in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Equifax from $220.00 to $212.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Equifax from $245.00 to $232.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.79.

Equifax Company Profile

Equifax Inc (NYSE: EFX) is a global data, analytics and technology company that specializes in consumer and commercial credit reporting, decisioning tools and identity solutions. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Equifax is one of the three major consumer credit reporting agencies in the United States and provides credit information and related services to lenders, employers, governments and consumers worldwide.

The company’s offerings include consumer credit reports and scores, credit monitoring and identity protection services, and a range of business-oriented products for risk management, fraud detection and compliance.