Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $301.13.

A number of brokerages have commented on EFX. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on Equifax from $325.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Gordon Haskett upgraded Equifax to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Wolfe Research lowered Equifax from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Equifax from $340.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th.

Equifax Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EFX opened at $244.38 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $255.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $271.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.75. The firm has a market cap of $30.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.58. Equifax has a fifty-two week low of $213.02 and a fifty-two week high of $309.63.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12. Equifax had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 19.13%. On average, analysts expect that Equifax will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.30%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Greenleaf Trust grew its holdings in Equifax by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,702 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $434,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equifax by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 1,012 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $258,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equifax by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 817 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $208,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Integrated Advisors Network LLC boosted its holdings in Equifax by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 1,595 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $406,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Equifax by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 879 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. 96.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.