Czech National Bank Purchases 1,604 Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Czech National Bank raised its stake in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 6.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,480 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares during the period. Czech National Bank's holdings in Equifax were worth $6,937,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Equifax during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in Equifax by 1,920.0% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 101 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Equifax in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Spire Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Equifax by 98.7% during the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 151 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $295.00 price objective on shares of Equifax in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Equifax from $277.00 to $296.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Equifax from $335.00 to $310.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Equifax from $284.00 to $281.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Equifax in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Equifax has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $294.44.

Equifax Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of EFX stock traded down $1.06 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $265.94. 848,448 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 975,756. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Equifax Inc. has a 1 year low of $199.98 and a 1 year high of $309.63. The firm has a market cap of $33.03 billion, a PE ratio of 55.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.68. The company's 50 day moving average is $249.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $252.66.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The credit services provider reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.08. Equifax had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 19.13%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that Equifax Inc. will post 7.58 EPS for the current year.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. This is a positive change from Equifax's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Equifax's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.90%.

Insider Activity

In other Equifax news, EVP John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.10, for a total transaction of $518,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 65,176 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,887,101.60. The trade was a 2.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 22,160 shares of the business'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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 142,395 shares in the company, valued at $36,539,980.95. This trade represents a 13.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

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.