Everence Capital Management Inc. Has $729,000 Stock Position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Everence Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 105.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,860 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,470 shares during the period. Everence Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Equifax were worth $729,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Equifax in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equifax in the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Equifax in the third quarter worth approximately $48,000. Intact Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Equifax in the third quarter valued at approximately $73,000. Finally, Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc purchased a new position in shares of Equifax during the third quarter valued at approximately $85,000. 96.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equifax Stock Performance

NYSE:EFX opened at $253.39 on Friday. Equifax Inc. has a 52-week low of $213.02 and a 52-week high of $309.63. The business’s fifty day moving average is $261.09 and its 200 day moving average is $272.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market cap of $31.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.31, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 1.57.

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

Equifax Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. Equifax’s payout ratio is 34.67%.

Insider Activity

In other Equifax news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,045,781.83. This trade represents a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 58,304 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.49, for a total transaction of $15,770,648.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 109,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,532,909.67. This trade represents a 34.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 59,855 shares of company stock worth $16,187,044. 1.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EFX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Equifax in a report on Friday, October 18th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Equifax from $305.00 to $284.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Equifax from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $275.00 to $320.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of Equifax from $315.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equifax presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $311.18.

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.