Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $70.47 Million Position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its holdings in shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 276,502 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 12,935 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.22% of Equifax worth $70,467,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Equifax during the fourth quarter worth about $330,400,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in Equifax by 95.9% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,617,574 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $412,239,000 after purchasing an additional 791,730 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Equifax during the fourth quarter worth approximately $113,896,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Equifax by 34.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 863,718 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $251,480,000 after buying an additional 220,109 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its stake in shares of Equifax by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,228,741 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $313,213,000 after acquiring an additional 187,460 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Equifax Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE EFX traded down $1.13 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $216.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 822,401 shares, compared to its average volume of 972,312. Equifax Inc. has a 52 week low of $199.98 and a 52 week high of $309.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $27.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.65. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $241.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $258.06.

Remove Ads

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12. Equifax had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 19.13%. Equities analysts forecast that Equifax Inc. will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. Equifax's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Equifax in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Equifax from $321.00 to $313.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wolfe Research cut Equifax from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Equifax from $284.00 to $281.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $294.13.

Equifax Company 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.