Brokerages Set FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) Target Price at $453.46

Shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Reduce" from the thirteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and eight have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $453.46.

FDS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued an "inline" rating and a $470.00 price target on the stock. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of FactSet Research Systems from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $420.00 to $380.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $521.00 to $518.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $373.00 to $409.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $435.00 to $503.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th.

FactSet Research Systems Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE:FDS traded down $1.45 on Friday, reaching $475.06. The stock had a trading volume of 158,739 shares, compared to its average volume of 167,969. The company has a 50-day moving average of $481.27 and a 200 day moving average of $448.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market cap of $18.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.76. FactSet Research Systems has a 12-month low of $391.84 and a 12-month high of $499.87.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $4.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.25 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $568.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $565.14 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 24.38% and a return on equity of 34.77%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.12 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that FactSet Research Systems will post 17.2 earnings per share for the current year.

FactSet Research Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.88%. FactSet Research Systems's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.82%.

Insider Activity at FactSet Research Systems

In other FactSet Research Systems news, insider John Costigan sold 1,622 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $481.00, for a total transaction of $780,182.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 299 shares in the company, valued at $143,819. This trade represents a 84.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of FactSet Research Systems

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,204 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,941,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 11.8% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 447 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $183,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in FactSet Research Systems by 5.5% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 22,538 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $9,202,000 after acquiring an additional 1,172 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 15.6% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 26,414 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $10,846,000 after purchasing an additional 3,555 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 8.1% in the 2nd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,769 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $722,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. 91.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About FactSet Research Systems

FactSet Research Systems Inc, a financial data company, provides integrated financial information and analytical applications to the investment community in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company delivers insight and information through the workflow solutions of research, analytics and trading, content and technology solutions, and wealth.