Carnegie Investment Counsel Purchases New Stake in Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Key Points

• Carnegie Investment Counsel has acquired a new stake in Equifax, Inc., purchasing 2,753 shares valued at approximately $671,000 in the first quarter.
• Equifax reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.92, with a revenue of $1.54 billion.
• CEO Mark W. Begor sold 22,160 shares of Equifax stock for approximately $5.69 million, which represents a 13.47% decrease in his ownership.

Carnegie Investment Counsel purchased a new stake in Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,753 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $671,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Equifax by 1,920.0% in the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 101 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in Equifax in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its stake in Equifax by 505.0% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 121 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. acquired a new position in Equifax during the first quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Equifax during the first quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Equifax Price Performance

Equifax stock opened at $246.31 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.20, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.60. Equifax, Inc. has a 52-week low of $199.98 and a 52-week high of $309.63. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $261.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $253.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.77.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The credit services provider reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.51 billion. Equifax had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 10.95%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.82 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Equifax, Inc. will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 22,160 shares of the company'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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 142,395 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 65,176 shares in the company, valued at $16,887,101.60. The trade was 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 corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EFX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their target price on Equifax from $294.00 to $290.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Equifax from $310.00 to $289.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays lowered their target price on Equifax from $260.00 to $240.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $295.00 target price on shares of Equifax in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Equifax from $296.00 to $279.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $285.00.

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.

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