Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Grows Position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 22.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,097 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,110 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Equifax were worth $1,792,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in EFX. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Equifax by 76,913.8% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 960,362 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $282,212,000 after acquiring an additional 959,115 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Equifax by 4.9% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,276,798 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,036,952,000 after purchasing an additional 200,665 shares during the last quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Equifax by 127.1% in the second quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC now owns 350,356 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $84,947,000 after purchasing an additional 196,106 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Equifax by 27.3% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 606,969 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $147,166,000 after purchasing an additional 130,249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Equifax by 5,123.0% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 115,114 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $33,827,000 after buying an additional 112,910 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Equifax news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total value of $143,474.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 available through this link. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 58,304 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.49, for a total value of $15,770,648.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 109,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,532,909.67. The trade was a 34.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 59,855 shares of company stock valued at $16,187,044 over the last 90 days. 1.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Equifax Price Performance

NYSE:EFX opened at $261.56 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Equifax Inc. has a 52 week low of $213.02 and a 52 week high of $309.63. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $274.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $268.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.42 billion, a PE ratio of 58.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.59.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The credit services provider reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.44 billion. Equifax had a net margin of 10.07% and a return on equity of 18.56%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.76 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Equifax Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EFX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Equifax from $300.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. BNP Paribas raised Equifax from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $310.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $350.00 target price on shares of Equifax in a report on Monday, October 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Equifax from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Equifax in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $360.00 price target for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Equifax currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $306.74.

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.