Deutsche Bank AG Buys 117,009 Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 47.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 362,594 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 117,009 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG owned approximately 0.29% of Equifax worth $92,407,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in EFX. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Equifax in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its holdings in Equifax by 505.0% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 121 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management grew its holdings in Equifax by 98.7% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 151 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new position in shares of Equifax during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Equifax during the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Equifax Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE EFX opened at $269.82 on Monday. Equifax Inc. has a 1 year low of $199.98 and a 1 year high of $309.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $33.51 billion, a PE ratio of 55.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a fifty day moving average of $240.47 and a 200 day moving average of $252.28.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The credit services provider reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. Equifax had a return on equity of 19.13% and a net margin of 10.63%. Research analysts forecast that Equifax Inc. will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Equifax's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Equifax's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EFX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Equifax from $284.00 to $281.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Equifax in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Equifax in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $280.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $295.00 price target on shares of Equifax in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $292.00.

Insider Activity

In other Equifax news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 22,160 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.61, for a total value of $5,686,477.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 142,395 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $36,539,980.95. This trade represents a 13.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.10, for a total value of $518,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 65,176 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,887,101.60. This trade represents a 2.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

About Equifax

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.

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