Merit Financial Group LLC Makes New Investment in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS)

Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,104 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $502,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FDS. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 19.1% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 137 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 291 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $140,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Kolinsky Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Kolinsky Wealth Management LLC now owns 739 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $355,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 1,214 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $583,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geller Advisors LLC raised its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Geller Advisors LLC now owns 468 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.24% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other FactSet Research Systems news, CAO Gregory T. Moskoff sold 363 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $433.73, for a total value of $157,443.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 44 shares in the company, valued at $19,084.12. This trade represents a 89.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

FactSet Research Systems Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of FDS traded down $3.86 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $420.31. The stock had a trading volume of 325,972 shares, compared to its average volume of 294,316. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market cap of $15.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $439.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $454.80. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a twelve month low of $391.69 and a twelve month high of $499.87.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The business services provider reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.17 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $570.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $570.65 million. FactSet Research Systems had a return on equity of 33.92% and a net margin of 24.16%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.22 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.21 EPS for the current year.

FactSet Research Systems Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.05%. This is an increase from FactSet Research Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $1.04. FactSet Research Systems's payout ratio is currently 31.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $409.00 to $390.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $503.00 target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded FactSet Research Systems from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $450.00 to $402.00 in a report on Friday, March 21st. UBS Group dropped their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $525.00 to $480.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $448.00.

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.