Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Buys 13,854,613 Shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. $FDS

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management dramatically increased its FactSet stake in Q4, adding 13.85 million shares and making FDS its 11th-largest holding. The firm now owns about 37.35% of FactSet, valued at roughly $4.02 billion.
• FactSet beat quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $4.46 EPS on $611.02 million in revenue. Revenue rose 7.1% year over year, and analysts now expect full-year EPS of 17.65.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.16 per share from $1.10, implying a $4.64 annualized payout and a 2.2% yield. Despite the gains, analysts currently have an average rating of “Reduce” on the stock.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS - Free Report) by 444,058.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,857,733 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 13,854,613 shares during the quarter. FactSet Research Systems makes up approximately 2.0% of Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. owned about 37.35% of FactSet Research Systems worth $4,021,376,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Horizon Corp purchased a new position in FactSet Research Systems during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. WPG Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 76.9% during the 4th quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 92 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Winnow Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of FactSet Research Systems during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Field & Main Bank purchased a new position in shares of FactSet Research Systems during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. 91.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FactSet Research Systems Trading Up 6.3%

Shares of FDS stock opened at $212.49 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.74 billion, a PE ratio of 13.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.69. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a 1 year low of $185.00 and a 1 year high of $474.79. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $218.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $247.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.43.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The business services provider reported $4.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.37 by $0.09. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 24.48% and a return on equity of 30.25%. The firm had revenue of $611.02 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $604.78 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.28 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.65 earnings per share for the current year.

FactSet Research Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. This is an increase from FactSet Research Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. FactSet Research Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on FDS shares. Bank of America began coverage on FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. UBS Group dropped their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $425.00 to $380.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $253.00 to $217.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $320.00 to $243.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Friday, March 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $279.85.

FactSet Research Systems Company Profile

FactSet Research Systems Inc operates as a global provider of integrated financial data and analytics to the investment community. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, the company offers a unified platform that aggregates content from thousands of sources, delivering real-time and historical market data, company fundamentals, estimates, fixed-income information and proprietary analytics to portfolio managers, research analysts, investment bankers and risk officers.

The company's core products include the FactSet Workstation, an application offering customizable screening, charting, portfolio analysis and news; APIs and data feeds for seamless integration into proprietary systems; and cloud-based solutions for thematic research and quantitative strategies.

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