Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Price Target Cut to $321.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) had its target price trimmed by Wells Fargo & Company from $325.00 to $321.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the credit services provider's stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Equifax from $305.00 to $284.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Morgan Stanley raised Equifax from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $275.00 to $320.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Equifax from $304.00 to $283.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered shares of Equifax from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equifax presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $309.47.

Equifax Stock Down 1.7 %

NYSE EFX traded down $4.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $243.97. The stock had a trading volume of 1,206,366 shares, compared to its average volume of 864,244. The stock has a market cap of $30.24 billion, a PE ratio of 54.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.57. Equifax has a 1 year low of $213.02 and a 1 year high of $309.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $259.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $272.34.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The credit services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.01. Equifax had a return on equity of 18.56% and a net margin of 10.07%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.76 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Equifax will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. Equifax's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.67%.

Insider Activity at Equifax

In other news, EVP John J. Kelley III sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.92, for a total transaction of $272,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,269 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,075,535.48. The trade was a 8.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total transaction of $143,474.89. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,697 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,045,781.83. This trade represents a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 59,855 shares of company stock worth $16,187,044. Insiders own 1.57% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFX. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Equifax by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 11,541 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,953,000 after acquiring an additional 575 shares in the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in Equifax during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Everence Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Equifax by 105.8% during the fourth quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,860 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $729,000 after purchasing an additional 1,470 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Equifax by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,851 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $727,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Equifax by 32.9% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 376 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.