FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) Receives Average Recommendation of "Reduce" from Brokerages

Key Points

• FactSet Research Systems has an average analyst rating of "Reduce" from 17 brokerages, with most analysts recommending hold or sell. The average 12-month price target is about $279.85.
• The company recently reported quarterly earnings of $4.46 per share, topping estimates, while revenue rose 7.1% year over year to $611.02 million. It also posted strong profitability metrics, including a net margin of 24.48% and return on equity of 30.25%.
• FactSet raised its quarterly dividend to $1.16 per share from $1.10, payable June 18, for an annualized yield of about 2.1%. The stock was trading up 5.5% at $224.33, well below its 52-week high of $473.33.

Shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Reduce" from the seventeen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have assigned a hold recommendation, one has issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $279.8462.

A number of analysts have commented on FDS shares. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $425.00 to $380.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $253.00 to $217.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Barclays dropped their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $300.00 to $210.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Bank of America began coverage on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $320.00 to $243.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 5.6% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,727 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $785,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in FactSet Research Systems by 27.6% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 972 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $442,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in FactSet Research Systems by 188.2% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 98 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 58.6% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 138 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 15.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 5,247 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,347,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares in the last quarter. 91.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FactSet Research Systems Trading Up 5.5%

Shares of FDS stock opened at $224.33 on Tuesday. FactSet Research Systems has a 1-year low of $185.00 and a 1-year high of $473.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market cap of $8.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.43, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $218.02 and a 200-day moving average of $246.65.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The business services provider reported $4.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.37 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $611.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $604.78 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 24.48% and a return on equity of 30.25%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.28 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that FactSet Research Systems will post 17.65 earnings per share for the current year.

FactSet Research Systems Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This is a boost from FactSet Research Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. FactSet Research Systems's payout ratio is currently 28.30%.

FactSet Research Systems Company Profile

FactSet Research Systems Inc operates as a global provider of integrated financial data and analytics to the investment community. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, the company offers a unified platform that aggregates content from thousands of sources, delivering real-time and historical market data, company fundamentals, estimates, fixed-income information and proprietary analytics to portfolio managers, research analysts, investment bankers and risk officers.

The company's core products include the FactSet Workstation, an application offering customizable screening, charting, portfolio analysis and news; APIs and data feeds for seamless integration into proprietary systems; and cloud-based solutions for thematic research and quantitative strategies.

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