Bank of America Downgrades Equifax (NYSE:EFX) to Neutral

Bank of America cut shares of Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note published on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. Bank of America currently has $285.00 price objective on the credit services provider's stock, down from their prior price objective of $300.00.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on EFX. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Equifax from $288.00 to $306.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $305.00 price objective (up from $295.00) on shares of Equifax in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Equifax in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Equifax from $277.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $295.00 price target on shares of Equifax in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $294.94.

Equifax Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of EFX traded down $2.13 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $259.68. 76,109 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,040,028. The company has a market cap of $32.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. Equifax has a 12-month low of $199.98 and a 12-month high of $309.63. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $260.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $253.16.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 18.81% and a net margin of 10.68%. Research analysts forecast that Equifax will post 7.58 EPS for the current year.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 23rd. This is a boost from Equifax's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Equifax's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 22,160 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 142,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,539,980.95. This represents a 13.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.10, for a total value of $518,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 65,176 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equifax

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EFX. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc increased its stake in Equifax by 3.7% in the first quarter. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc now owns 1,134 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $276,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its holdings in Equifax by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 817 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $208,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC boosted its holdings in Equifax by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 1,595 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $406,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Equifax by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 879 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equifax by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 799 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $204,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.20% 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.