UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Cuts Holdings in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lessened its stake in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX - Free Report) by 4.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 755,294 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 32,948 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.61% of Equifax worth $221,951,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Equifax by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,276,798 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,036,952,000 after acquiring an additional 200,665 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in Equifax by 37.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,233,744 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $950,268,000 after purchasing an additional 880,162 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its position in Equifax by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 3,044,561 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $738,184,000 after purchasing an additional 70,091 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Equifax by 76,913.8% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 960,362 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $282,212,000 after purchasing an additional 959,115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Equifax by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 767,136 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $225,431,000 after purchasing an additional 88,895 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.20% of the company's stock.

Equifax Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EFX traded up $0.37 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $261.56. 734,604 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,087,861. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $273.71 and a two-hundred day moving average of $268.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.12, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. Equifax Inc. has a one year low of $213.02 and a one year high of $309.63.

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

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Equifax's payout ratio is 34.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EFX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Equifax from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Barclays upped their price target on Equifax from $300.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. BNP Paribas raised Equifax from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $310.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Equifax in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $360.00 target price for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $306.74.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John J. Kelley III sold 1,000 shares of the firm'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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,269 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,075,535.48. This trade represents a 8.15 % decrease in their position. 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 firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total value of $143,474.89. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,045,781.83. This represents a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 59,855 shares of company stock valued at $16,187,044. 1.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.