Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) Shares Sold by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 6.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,559 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 459 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Equifax were worth $1,672,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EFX. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Equifax by 22.9% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 1,305 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $383,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Equifax in the 3rd quarter worth $305,000. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in Equifax by 18.5% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,149 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $632,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in Equifax by 22.3% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 6,097 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,792,000 after acquiring an additional 1,110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Equifax in the 3rd quarter worth $786,000. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equifax Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of EFX stock opened at $244.06 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $252.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $265.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The stock has a market cap of $30.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.53, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.65. Equifax Inc. has a twelve month low of $213.02 and a twelve month high of $309.63.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share 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 predict that Equifax Inc. will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.39 dividend. 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 currently 32.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on EFX shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Equifax in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Equifax from $335.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Equifax from $340.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Equifax 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.