KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Makes New Investment in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 42,355 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $10,794,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in Equifax by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,816,186 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,415,284,000 after purchasing an additional 52,489 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in Equifax by 37.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,233,744 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $950,268,000 after acquiring an additional 880,162 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Equifax by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,885,661 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $845,041,000 after acquiring an additional 29,742 shares in the last quarter. Cantillon Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Equifax by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Cantillon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,835,102 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $467,676,000 after acquiring an additional 9,702 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 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 worth $412,239,000 after purchasing an additional 791,730 shares in the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Equifax Stock Performance

NYSE EFX traded down $1.88 on Tuesday, reaching $243.48. The stock had a trading volume of 1,411,067 shares, compared to its average volume of 920,916. The stock has a market cap of $30.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.65. Equifax Inc. has a 12-month low of $213.02 and a 12-month high of $309.63. The business's 50-day moving average price is $252.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $264.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.75.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.12. Equifax had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 19.13%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Equifax Inc. will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.64%. Equifax's payout ratio is 32.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EFX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Equifax from $335.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Equifax from $286.00 to $279.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on Equifax from $325.00 to $300.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Gordon Haskett raised Equifax to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Equifax from $321.00 to $313.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $298.56.

About Equifax

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.