Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $215.29, but opened at $241.27. Equifax shares last traded at $239.20, with a volume of 212,142 shares traded.

The credit services provider reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.41 billion. Equifax had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 19.13%.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This is an increase from Equifax's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Equifax's payout ratio is presently 32.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America started coverage on Equifax in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $280.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Equifax from $335.00 to $310.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Equifax from $313.00 to $284.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Equifax in a research note on Wednesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $292.00.

Institutional Trading of Equifax

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Equifax by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 184,890 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $54,329,000 after purchasing an additional 5,097 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Equifax during the 3rd quarter worth $2,797,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equifax in the 3rd quarter worth about $95,000. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in Equifax by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 5,872 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,726,000 after purchasing an additional 855 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp grew its position in Equifax by 23.0% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 6,184 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,817,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Equifax Stock Down 0.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $236.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $253.73. The company has a market cap of $32.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.65.

Equifax Company 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.