Fifth Third Bancorp Buys 22,177 Shares of Equifax, Inc. $EFX

Key Points

• Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its Equifax stake by 295.7% in the first quarter, buying 22,177 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 29,678 shares worth about $5.34 million.
• Equifax reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings, posting $1.86 EPS on revenue of $1.65 billion, both ahead of analyst estimates and up 14.3% from a year earlier.
• Analysts remain generally positive on the stock, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $223.39, even as several firms recently trimmed their targets slightly.

Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 295.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,678 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 22,177 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp's holdings in Equifax were worth $5,344,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of EFX. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Equifax during the third quarter valued at $4,981,000. Threadgill Financial LLC increased its stake in Equifax by 31.3% in the 4th quarter. Threadgill Financial LLC now owns 28,929 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $6,277,000 after acquiring an additional 6,900 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Funds Management LTD bought a new position in Equifax in the 4th quarter worth about $27,889,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equifax by 359.5% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 61,817 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $13,413,000 after acquiring an additional 48,364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Equifax by 49.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,638 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $927,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Equifax Price Performance

EFX opened at $177.17 on Friday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $164.94 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $184.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.32. Equifax, Inc. has a 52-week low of $150.74 and a 52-week high of $271.84.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The credit services provider reported $1.86 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.17. Equifax had a return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 11.12%.The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.53 earnings per share. Equifax's revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equifax has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.150-2.250 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.340-8.740 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Equifax, Inc. will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Equifax's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.44%.

Insider Activity at Equifax

In other Equifax news, EVP Chad M. Borton sold 2,455 shares of the business'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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 37,791 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.40, for a total value of $6,515,168.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 271,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $46,846,252. The trade was a 12.21% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Equifax from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Equifax in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of Equifax in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Equifax from $230.00 to $220.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Equifax from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $223.39.

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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