Wells Fargo & Company Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Stock Price

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) had its target price cut by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $325.00 to $321.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price suggests a potential upside of 31.57% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on EFX. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Equifax in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $360.00 price objective on the stock. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on shares of Equifax from $315.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Equifax from $300.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Equifax from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $311.81.

Equifax Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EFX opened at $243.97 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $259.05 and its 200 day moving average is $272.61. 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 company has a market capitalization of $30.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.57. Equifax has a fifty-two week low of $213.02 and a fifty-two week high of $309.63.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Equifax

In other news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 58,304 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The shares were 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 owns 109,183 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,532,909.67. This trade represents a 34.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John J. Kelley III sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.92, for a total transaction of $272,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,269 shares in the company, valued at $3,075,535.48. This represents a 8.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 59,855 shares of company stock worth $16,187,044 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Equifax by 1.2% in the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 3,726 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $903,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Equifax by 13.5% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 371 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust lifted its stake in Equifax by 3.0% in the third quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,665 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $489,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in Equifax by 3.7% in the third quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 1,474 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Equifax by 1.9% in the third quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,936 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $863,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

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.