The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Raises Holdings in Equifax, Inc. $EFX

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Equifax, acquiring 7,615 additional shares, bringing its total ownership to 81,657 shares worth approximately $19.89 million.
• Equifax reported earnings of $2.00 EPS for the last quarter, which was above analysts' expectations of $1.92, with a revenue of $1.54 billion, a 7.4% increase year-over-year.
• CEO Mark W. Begor sold 48,264 shares at an average price of $241.71, resulting in a significant 25.25% decrease in his ownership stake.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 10.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 81,657 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 7,615 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.07% of Equifax worth $19,888,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in Equifax during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Equifax during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its holdings 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 during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in shares of Equifax in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, City Holding Co. bought a new stake in shares of Equifax in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Equifax in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Equifax from $310.00 to $289.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $295.00 price target on shares of Equifax in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Citigroup cut their price target on Equifax from $294.00 to $290.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $305.00 price target (up previously from $295.00) on shares of Equifax in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Equifax has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $283.53.

Equifax Trading Up 3.8%

Shares of NYSE:EFX traded up $9.21 during trading on Friday, reaching $249.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,381,888 shares, compared to its average volume of 925,086. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Equifax, Inc. has a 12 month low of $199.98 and a 12 month high of $309.63. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $250.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $249.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.93 billion, a PE ratio of 48.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.68.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The credit services provider reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.08. Equifax had a net margin of 10.95% and a return on equity of 18.89%. The firm had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.82 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equifax has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.870-1.970 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 7.330-7.630 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Equifax, Inc. will post 7.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Equifax's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.14%.

Insider Transactions at Equifax

In other Equifax news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 48,264 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.71, for a total value of $11,665,891.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 142,872 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,533,591.12. This trade represents a 25.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Equifax

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.