Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) is Theleme Partners LLP's 5th Largest Position

Theleme Partners LLP increased its holdings in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 19.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 713,088 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 115,000 shares during the quarter. Equifax makes up approximately 12.2% of Theleme Partners LLP's holdings, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Theleme Partners LLP owned about 0.58% of Equifax worth $181,730,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of EFX. Greenleaf Trust raised its holdings in Equifax by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,702 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $434,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Equifax by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 1,012 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $258,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its stake in Equifax by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 817 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $208,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Equifax by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 879 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Equifax by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 799 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $204,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Equifax Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE:EFX traded down $0.22 on Friday, reaching $262.69. 192,438 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 969,516. 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 company has a market capitalization of $32.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.30, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.68. Equifax Inc. has a 12 month low of $199.98 and a 12 month high of $309.63. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $245.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $252.83.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The credit services provider reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.41 billion. Equifax had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 19.13%. Equities analysts predict that Equifax Inc. will post 7.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Equifax's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Equifax's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.90%.

Insider Transactions at Equifax

In related news, EVP John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.10, for a total value of $518,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 65,176 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,887,101.60. This trade represents a 2.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 22,160 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 142,395 shares of the company's stock, valued at $36,539,980.95. The trade was a 13.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on EFX shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Equifax from $284.00 to $281.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Equifax in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Equifax from $288.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Gordon Haskett raised Equifax to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $260.00 target price (down from $325.00) on shares of Equifax in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $294.44.

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.