Stifel Nicolaus Cuts Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Price Target to $281.00

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) had its target price lowered by Stifel Nicolaus from $284.00 to $281.00 in a research note published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Equifax in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on Equifax from $325.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Equifax from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on shares of Equifax from $315.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $301.69.

Equifax Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of EFX opened at $248.59 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $261.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $274.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.81 billion, a PE ratio of 51.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.58. Equifax has a 12-month low of $213.02 and a 12-month high of $309.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12. Equifax had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 19.13%. As a group, research analysts predict that Equifax will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.30%.

Insider Transactions at Equifax

In other Equifax news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total value of $143,474.89. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,045,781.83. The trade was a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Equifax

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EFX. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Equifax during the third quarter worth $29,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Equifax during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in shares of Equifax during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Spire Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Equifax by 98.7% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 151 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Equifax during the third quarter worth about $48,000. 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.