Waverly Advisors LLC Takes Position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Waverly Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 1,288 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $328,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Equifax in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in Equifax by 1,920.0% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 101 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its position in Equifax by 505.0% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 121 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in Equifax by 98.7% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 151 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new stake in Equifax in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group lowered their price target on Equifax from $335.00 to $310.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Equifax in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $295.00 price target on shares of Equifax in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Equifax from $277.00 to $296.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered Equifax from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $265.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $294.44.

Insider Activity at Equifax

In related news, EVP John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 $16,887,101.60. The trade was a 2.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 22,160 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The shares were 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. This trade represents a 13.47% 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 corporate insiders.

Equifax Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EFX traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $263.05. 134,970 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 970,337. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Equifax Inc. has a 12 month low of $199.98 and a 12 month high of $309.63. The company's 50 day moving average price is $247.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $252.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.67 billion, a PE ratio of 54.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.68.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The credit services provider reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.08. Equifax had a return on equity of 19.13% and a net margin of 10.63%. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Equifax Inc. will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This is an increase from Equifax's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. Equifax's payout ratio is 40.90%.

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.