Heartland Advisors Inc. Buys Shares of 14,929 FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS)

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors Inc. has made a new investment in FactSet Research Systems Inc., acquiring 14,929 shares valued at approximately $6,787,000 during the first quarter.
• Insider transactions revealed significant sales, with CAO Gregory T. Moskoff selling 2,500 shares and Director James J. Mcgonigle selling 2,925 shares, reducing their ownership by 98.27% and 39.60%, respectively.
• FactSet Research Systems issued a quarterly dividend of $1.10 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 1.05%, which is an increase from the previous $1.04 dividend.

Heartland Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 14,929 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,787,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ boosted its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 8,298 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,773,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. Hendershot Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Hendershot Investments Inc. now owns 12,110 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,506,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Advisors Preferred LLC bought a new position in FactSet Research Systems during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $710,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its position in FactSet Research Systems by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 85,016 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $38,652,000 after purchasing an additional 3,223 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in FactSet Research Systems during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $672,000. 91.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at FactSet Research Systems

In related news, Director James J. Mcgonigle sold 2,925 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.39, for a total transaction of $1,320,315.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,461 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,013,650.79. This trade represents a 39.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher R. Ellis sold 7,606 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $446.84, for a total value of $3,398,665.04. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,952 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,702,711.68. This trade represents a 24.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,031 shares of company stock valued at $5,825,481 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

FactSet Research Systems Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:FDS traded up $0.96 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $416.45. The stock had a trading volume of 53,784 shares, compared to its average volume of 317,628. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a 12 month low of $391.69 and a 12 month high of $499.87. The company has a market capitalization of $15.75 billion, a PE ratio of 30.01, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.84. The firm's fifty day moving average is $438.19 and its 200 day moving average is $443.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, June 23rd. The business services provider reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.30 by ($0.03). FactSet Research Systems had a return on equity of 31.59% and a net margin of 23.30%. The firm had revenue of $585.52 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $580.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.37 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were given a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This is a positive change from FactSet Research Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $1.04. FactSet Research Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on FDS. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $470.00 to $448.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Raymond James Financial raised FactSet Research Systems from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $503.00 price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $448.00 to $452.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $444.25.

FactSet Research Systems Company Profile

FactSet Research Systems Inc, a financial data company, provides integrated financial information and analytical applications to the investment community in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company delivers insight and information through the workflow solutions of research, analytics and trading, content and technology solutions, and wealth.