FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) Short Interest Down 5.4% in June

FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,940,000 shares, a decline of 5.4% from the May 31st total of 2,050,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 290,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.7 days.

FactSet Research Systems Stock Up 1.2 %

FactSet Research Systems stock opened at $416.01 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.86 billion, a PE ratio of 31.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.75. FactSet Research Systems has a twelve month low of $385.27 and a twelve month high of $488.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a 50 day moving average of $421.82 and a 200-day moving average of $446.53.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 21st. The business services provider reported $4.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.91 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $552.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $552.71 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 34.48%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.79 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that FactSet Research Systems will post 16.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st were given a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. This is a positive change from FactSet Research Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. FactSet Research Systems’s payout ratio is currently 31.37%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on FDS shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $464.00 price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Monday, June 24th. Bank of America cut shares of FactSet Research Systems from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $500.00 to $407.00 in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Friday, March 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $377.00 to $419.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Barclays restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 price objective (down previously from $480.00) on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, FactSet Research Systems currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $432.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Frederick Philip Snow sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $1,200,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,166,000. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Goran Skoko sold 6,215 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $436.40, for a total transaction of $2,712,226.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,296,336.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Frederick Philip Snow sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $1,200,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,166,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 27,419 shares of company stock valued at $11,606,013. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of FactSet Research Systems

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Morgan Stanley raised its position in FactSet Research Systems by 100.1% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,396,225 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $610,515,000 after acquiring an additional 698,611 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in FactSet Research Systems during the fourth quarter worth $47,977,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in FactSet Research Systems during the fourth quarter worth $45,288,000. PineStone Asset Management Inc. raised its position in FactSet Research Systems by 117.0% during the fourth quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 163,521 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $78,008,000 after acquiring an additional 88,173 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in FactSet Research Systems by 15.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 503,467 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $220,146,000 after acquiring an additional 66,986 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.24% of the company’s stock.

About FactSet Research Systems

FactSet Research Systems Inc, a financial data company, provides integrated financial information and analytical applications to the investment community in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company delivers insight and information through the workflow solutions of research, analytics and trading, content and technology solutions, and wealth.