Shell Asset Management Co. Lowers Stake in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Shell Asset Management Co. lessened its stake in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 42.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,727 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 3,476 shares during the period. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Equifax were worth $1,265,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Parnassus Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Equifax by 1,740.8% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 2,085,879 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $515,817,000 after buying an additional 1,972,564 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Equifax during the fourth quarter worth about $204,218,000. Boston Partners purchased a new position in Equifax in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $154,667,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Equifax in the fourth quarter worth $126,794,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Equifax by 70.2% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 739,492 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $182,869,000 after purchasing an additional 305,028 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Stock Performance

NYSE EFX traded up $0.22 on Friday, reaching $267.75. The stock had a trading volume of 122,126 shares, compared to its average volume of 817,926. The stock has a market cap of $33.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.56. Equifax Inc. has a 12-month low of $159.95 and a 12-month high of $276.69. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $244.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $247.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The credit services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.09. Equifax had a net margin of 10.67% and a return on equity of 18.88%. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.71 earnings per share. Equifax’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Equifax Inc. will post 7.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 24th were given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. Equifax’s payout ratio is 34.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equifax

In related news, CFO John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 3,650 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.24, for a total value of $836,726.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,219 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,263,083.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Equifax news, Director Karen L. Fichuk bought 415 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $238.77 per share, with a total value of $99,089.55. Following the purchase, the director now owns 3,305 shares in the company, valued at approximately $789,134.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 3,650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.24, for a total value of $836,726.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 62,219 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,263,083.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,238 shares of company stock worth $2,647,378. 1.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EFX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Equifax from $272.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Equifax from $255.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on shares of Equifax from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Equifax from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Equifax from $246.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $287.00.

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.