Equifax, Inc. $EFX Shares Purchased by SG Americas Securities LLC

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC increased its Equifax stake by 41.3% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 87,377 shares valued at about $15.7 million.
• Equifax reported better-than-expected Q1 results, with EPS of $1.86 versus $1.69 expected and revenue of $1.65 billion, up 14.3% year over year.
• The company’s shares were down 3.4% to $152.25, while analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus and a target price around $225.28.

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 41.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 87,377 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 25,560 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC owned about 0.07% of Equifax worth $15,734,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new stake in Equifax during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its holdings in Equifax by 612.5% in 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 in the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Equifax during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Equifax during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of Equifax in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 37,791 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.40, for a total transaction of $6,515,168.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 271,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,846,252. This represents a 12.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Chad M. Borton sold 2,455 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 29,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,132,885.02. The trade was 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. 1.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Equifax Trading Down 3.4%

Shares of EFX opened at $152.25 on Friday. Equifax, Inc. has a twelve month low of $150.74 and a twelve month high of $275.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $168.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $189.60.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The credit services provider reported $1.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.61 billion. Equifax had a return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 11.12%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.53 earnings per share. Equifax has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.150-2.250 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.340-8.740 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Equifax, Inc. will post 8.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 22nd. Equifax's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EFX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Equifax from $192.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Mizuho started coverage on shares of Equifax in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $222.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Equifax from $212.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Equifax from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on shares of Equifax from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $225.28.

About Equifax

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding EFX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.