Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Updates Q2 2024 Earnings Guidance

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) issued an update on its second quarter 2024 earnings guidance on Wednesday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 1.650-1.750 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 1.870. The company issued revenue guidance of $1.4 billion-$1.4 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $1.4 billion. Equifax also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 7.200-7.500 EPS.

Equifax Stock Performance

Shares of EFX stock opened at $237.68 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The business has a fifty day moving average of $259.14 and a 200 day moving average of $231.05. Equifax has a 1 year low of $159.95 and a 1 year high of $275.10.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The credit services provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.40 billion. Equifax had a return on equity of 19.40% and a net margin of 10.36%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.43 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Equifax will post 7.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.66%. Equifax’s payout ratio is currently 35.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on EFX. Redburn Atlantic lowered Equifax from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $272.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. TheStreet upgraded Equifax from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a research note on Friday, December 29th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a buy rating and set a $305.00 price objective on shares of Equifax in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Bank of America upgraded Equifax from an underperform rating to a buy rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $164.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Equifax from an in-line rating to an outperform rating and lifted their price target for the company from $210.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $267.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equifax

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EFX. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Equifax by 29.5% in the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 3,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $834,000 after acquiring an additional 801 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Equifax by 9.9% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,944 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,172,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its position in Equifax by 14.1% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,830 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $434,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Equifax by 2.0% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 439,028 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $104,100,000 after purchasing an additional 8,662 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Equifax by 0.8% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 17,409 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,141,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.