Fmr LLC Reduces Holdings in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

FMR LLC lessened its stake in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,115,696 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 118,048 shares during the quarter. FMR LLC owned 2.51% of Equifax worth $794,035,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EFX. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of Equifax by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 297,631 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $75,851,000 after purchasing an additional 21,039 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Equifax by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 286,626 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $73,047,000 after buying an additional 5,120 shares during the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Equifax during the 4th quarter worth about $9,203,000. Riverwater Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Equifax by 19.3% during the 4th quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC now owns 1,509 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $385,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its holdings in shares of Equifax by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 555,733 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $141,628,000 after acquiring an additional 18,186 shares during the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Equifax Price Performance

Shares of EFX traded up $2.63 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $220.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,593,566 shares, compared to its average volume of 977,768. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $240.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $257.33. Equifax Inc. has a 1-year low of $199.98 and a 1-year high of $309.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90.

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

Equifax Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Equifax's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on EFX shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped 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. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Equifax from $286.00 to $279.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on Equifax from $325.00 to $300.00 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. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered shares of Equifax from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $265.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equifax currently has an average 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.