North Star Asset Management Inc. Raises Stock Position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

North Star Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 111,465 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 4,424 shares during the period. Equifax comprises about 1.3% of North Star Asset Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. North Star Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.09% of Equifax worth $28,407,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in EFX. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Equifax by 39.0% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 10,843 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $2,775,000 after acquiring an additional 3,043 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Equifax by 2.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 184,890 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $54,329,000 after purchasing an additional 5,097 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in Equifax by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,585 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $404,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Equifax in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,572,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Equifax by 95.9% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,617,574 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $412,239,000 after buying an additional 791,730 shares in the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equifax Stock Performance

Shares of EFX stock traded up $3.75 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $262.14. The stock had a trading volume of 941,961 shares, compared to its average volume of 974,173. Equifax Inc. has a 1-year low of $199.98 and a 1-year high of $309.63. The firm has a market cap of $32.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.27, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The business's fifty day moving average is $247.04 and its 200-day moving average is $252.56.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The credit services provider reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.08. Equifax had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 19.13%. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. On average, research analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This is a boost from Equifax's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Equifax's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on EFX shares. Bank of America assumed coverage on Equifax in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $280.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Equifax from $288.00 to $306.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Equifax from $277.00 to $296.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Equifax in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Equifax from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $265.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, March 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $294.44.

Insider Activity at Equifax

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

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.