Carmignac Gestion Sells 385,410 Shares of Equifax, Inc. $EFX

Key Points

• Carmignac Gestion cut its Equifax stake by 51.4% in the first quarter, selling 385,410 shares and retaining 364,605 shares worth approximately $65.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own 96.2% of Equifax.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with 13 Buy ratings, five Holds and one Sell. Equifax has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $215.79.
• Equifax exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $2.25 in adjusted EPS on $1.70 billion in revenue, with revenue up 10.6% year over year. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.56, equivalent to a 1.3% annual yield.

Carmignac Gestion decreased its position in shares of Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 51.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 364,605 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 385,410 shares during the period. Equifax comprises about 1.0% of Carmignac Gestion's holdings, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Carmignac Gestion owned about 0.31% of Equifax worth $65,622,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EFX. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new stake in Equifax in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its position in Equifax by 612.5% during the fourth quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 114 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Reflection Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Equifax during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Equifax during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Equifax in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EFX has been the subject of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $182.00 price target on shares of Equifax in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Equifax from $265.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $220.00 price objective on shares of Equifax in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their target price on shares of Equifax from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $208.00 target price on shares of Equifax in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $215.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 37,791 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.16, for a total value of $6,506,098.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 271,890 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,808,582.40. This trade represents a 12.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Chad M. Borton sold 2,455 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.89, for a total transaction of $426,899.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 29,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,132,885.02. This trade represents a 7.68% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Equifax Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE EFX opened at $173.04 on Monday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $167.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $181.05. The company has a market cap of $20.33 billion, a PE ratio of 30.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.30. Equifax, Inc. has a 52-week low of $150.74 and a 52-week high of $271.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The credit services provider reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.05. Equifax had a net margin of 10.73% and a return on equity of 21.61%. The company had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.00 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equifax has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.150-2.250 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.390-8.690 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Equifax, Inc. will post 8.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were paid a $0.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Equifax's payout ratio is currently 39.37%.

Equifax Profile

Equifax Inc NYSE: EFX is a global data, analytics and technology company that specializes in consumer and commercial credit reporting, decisioning tools and identity solutions. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Equifax is one of the three major consumer credit reporting agencies in the United States and provides credit information and related services to lenders, employers, governments and consumers worldwide.

The company's offerings include consumer credit reports and scores, credit monitoring and identity protection services, and a range of business-oriented products for risk management, fraud detection and compliance.

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