KBC Group NV Sells 17,890 Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

KBC Group NV trimmed its position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 52.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,436 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 17,890 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Equifax were worth $4,188,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Equifax by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 74,225 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,997,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its stake in shares of Equifax by 3.9% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 34,929 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $8,469,000 after acquiring an additional 1,303 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Equifax by 66.4% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,993 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $483,000 after acquiring an additional 795 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Equifax in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,967,000. Finally, Czech National Bank boosted its stake in Equifax by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 25,206 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $7,407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,651 shares in the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Equifax news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total transaction of $143,474.89. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Trading Up 2.7 %

EFX stock opened at $278.56 on Friday. Equifax Inc. has a 52-week low of $213.02 and a 52-week high of $309.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market cap of $34.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.90, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.57. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $260.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $274.76.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on EFX. Morgan Stanley decreased 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. Wolfe Research lowered Equifax from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Equifax from $340.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on Equifax from $315.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Equifax from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $310.88.

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.