Equifax, Inc. $EFX Shares Sold by ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.

Key Points

• ZWJ Investment Counsel cut its Equifax stake by 83.1% in Q4, selling 148,111 shares and retaining 30,092 shares worth about $6.53M, while institutional investors own roughly 96.2% of the stock.
• Equifax beat Q4 expectations with EPS of $2.09 (vs. $2.05) and revenue of $1.55B, and issued FY2026 guidance of $8.30–$8.70 EPS and Q1 2026 guidance of $1.63–$1.73.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.56 ($2.24 annualized, ~1.2% yield), meanwhile insiders sold about 49,671 shares (~$9.96M) in the last 90 days; analysts' consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average target of $237.86.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 83.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,092 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 148,111 shares during the quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Equifax were worth $6,529,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its position in shares of Equifax by 6.0% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 392,560 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $100,703,000 after purchasing an additional 22,302 shares in the last quarter. Explore Capital Management LLC increased its position in Equifax by 34.6% during the third quarter. Explore Capital Management LLC now owns 40,930 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $10,500,000 after buying an additional 10,530 shares during the period. SteelPeak Wealth LLC increased its position in Equifax by 164.6% during the third quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 8,034 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $2,061,000 after buying an additional 4,998 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Equifax by 27.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 767,982 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $197,018,000 after buying an additional 163,866 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Equifax by 34.0% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 383,441 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $98,364,000 after acquiring an additional 97,347 shares during the period. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equifax Stock Performance

Shares of EFX opened at $186.39 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.56. The company's fifty day moving average is $189.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $207.92. Equifax, Inc. has a 1 year low of $166.02 and a 1 year high of $281.03.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.04. Equifax had a net margin of 10.87% and a return on equity of 19.27%. The business had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.12 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equifax has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.300-8.700 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.630-1.730 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Equifax, Inc. will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 9th were given a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. This is a positive change from Equifax's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Equifax's payout ratio is presently 42.11%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.72, for a total transaction of $880,740.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,532,018.12. This represents a 7.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Jamil Farshchi sold 6,213 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.81, for a total value of $1,216,567.53. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 41,036 shares in the company, valued at $8,035,259.16. This represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 49,671 shares of company stock worth $9,960,181. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on EFX shares. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Equifax from $230.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Equifax from $240.00 to $215.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Equifax in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Equifax in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets set a $195.00 price target on Equifax in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $237.86.

Equifax Company 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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