Focus Partners Wealth Buys 1,220 Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake in shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 35.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,667 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,220 shares during the quarter. Focus Partners Wealth's holdings in Equifax were worth $1,212,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fred Alger Management LLC bought a new stake in Equifax during the fourth quarter worth about $20,550,000. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Equifax by 243.9% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 10,664 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,718,000 after buying an additional 7,563 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its holdings in shares of Equifax by 47.6% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 362,594 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $92,407,000 after acquiring an additional 117,009 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Equifax during the 4th quarter worth approximately $234,000. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its position in shares of Equifax by 505.0% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 121 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on EFX. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Equifax in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $280.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Argus lowered Equifax from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Equifax from $284.00 to $281.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Equifax from $335.00 to $310.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equifax has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $293.38.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.10, for a total transaction of $518,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 65,176 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,887,101.60. This trade represents a 2.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 22,160 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.61, for a total transaction of $5,686,477.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 142,395 shares of the company's stock, valued at $36,539,980.95. This represents a 13.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Equifax Trading Down 6.8%

Shares of Equifax stock traded down $18.82 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $258.20. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,198,167 shares, compared to its average volume of 974,334. The stock has a market cap of $32.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.68. Equifax Inc. has a 52 week low of $199.98 and a 52 week high of $309.63. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $244.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $252.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

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

Equifax Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. This is an increase from Equifax's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Equifax's payout ratio is 40.90%.

Equifax 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.