Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Sells 13,000 Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. lowered its stake in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 31.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,700 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 13,000 shares during the quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.'s holdings in Equifax were worth $7,059,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

Equifax Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:EFX traded up $1.85 during trading on Monday, reaching $280.53. 801,017 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 966,408. The firm has a market cap of $34.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Equifax Inc. has a 1-year low of $199.98 and a 1-year high of $309.63. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $243.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $252.52.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The credit services provider reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. Equifax had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 19.13%. Analysts anticipate that Equifax Inc. will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This is an increase from Equifax's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Equifax's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on EFX shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Equifax from $313.00 to $284.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Barclays reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $260.00 price target (down from $325.00) on shares of Equifax in a research report on Friday, April 4th. BNP Paribas lowered shares of Equifax from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $265.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Equifax to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Equifax from $335.00 to $310.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equifax has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $292.00.

Insider Activity

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