PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. Takes Position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. purchased a new position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 4,000 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,175,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its holdings in Equifax by 8.5% during the 2nd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 26,675 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $6,916,000 after acquiring an additional 2,085 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its stake in shares of Equifax by 14.2% during the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 126,856 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $33,970,000 after acquiring an additional 15,744 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in shares of Equifax by 85.8% in the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 37,902 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $9,904,000 after purchasing an additional 17,501 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in Equifax by 183.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 17,015 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,552,000 after purchasing an additional 11,002 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Equifax by 23.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,365 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,241,000 after acquiring an additional 2,499 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Equifax

In related news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 58,304 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.49, for a total transaction of $15,770,648.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 109,183 shares in the company, valued at $29,532,909.67. The trade was a 34.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John J. Kelley III sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.92, for a total value of $272,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,269 shares in the company, valued at $3,075,535.48. This represents a 8.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.66% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Equifax Price Performance

Shares of EFX traded up $0.50 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $245.53. 557,076 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 870,011. The company's 50-day moving average price is $280.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $267.82. Equifax Inc. has a 52-week low of $208.25 and a 52-week high of $309.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a market cap of $30.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.59.

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

Equifax Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. Equifax's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group initiated coverage on Equifax in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $360.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Equifax in a report on Friday, October 18th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Equifax from $305.00 to $284.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Equifax from $304.00 to $283.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Equifax from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $310.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equifax currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $306.74.

Equifax 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.