FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) Receives Average Recommendation of “Reduce” from Brokerages

FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) has been given an average rating of “Reduce” by the thirteen brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $447.69.

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued an “inline” rating and a $470.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $451.00 to $469.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Redburn Atlantic downgraded FactSet Research Systems from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $420.00 to $380.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $435.00 to $503.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $485.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th.

FactSet Research Systems Price Performance

Shares of FDS stock opened at $477.98 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. FactSet Research Systems has a fifty-two week low of $391.84 and a fifty-two week high of $499.87. The firm has a market cap of $18.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.76. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $471.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $438.87.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The business services provider reported $3.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.12. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 24.38% and a return on equity of 34.77%. The business had revenue of $562.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $547.06 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.93 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that FactSet Research Systems will post 17.2 earnings per share for the current year.

FactSet Research Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. FactSet Research Systems’s payout ratio is 29.93%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Christopher R. Ellis sold 13,952 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.15, for a total value of $6,364,204.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 23,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,726,367.25. This trade represents a 37.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider John Costigan sold 1,622 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $481.00, for a total value of $780,182.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 299 shares in the company, valued at approximately $143,819. This trade represents a 84.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,984 shares of company stock valued at $10,981,107 over the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FactSet Research Systems

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in FactSet Research Systems by 214.5% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 5,400 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,454,000 after buying an additional 3,683 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of FactSet Research Systems in the first quarter worth approximately $202,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 6.0% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,058 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $432,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 49.5% during the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 8,857 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,616,000 after purchasing an additional 2,934 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank lifted its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 7,263 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,965,000 after buying an additional 557 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.24% of the company’s stock.

FactSet Research Systems Company Profile

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.