Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Hits New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

Shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) hit a new 52-week low on Saturday . The stock traded as low as $209.89 and last traded at $210.30, with a volume of 2944287 shares. The stock had previously closed at $231.80.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on EFX shares. Argus lowered Equifax from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Equifax from $335.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Equifax from $340.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Equifax to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on Equifax from $325.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $294.50.

Equifax Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The company has a market cap of $26.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.54, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.65. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $248.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $261.08.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Equifax Inc. will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.30%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFX. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Equifax by 19.8% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 9,881 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,904,000 after acquiring an additional 1,633 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its stake in Equifax by 24.3% in the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 7,269 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,136,000 after purchasing an additional 1,420 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in shares of Equifax by 76.4% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 66,972 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $19,680,000 after purchasing an additional 29,006 shares during the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC grew its position in shares of Equifax by 73.6% during the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 5,693 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,673,000 after purchasing an additional 2,414 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Equifax by 4.1% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 15,454 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,541,000 after buying an additional 602 shares in the last quarter. 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.