FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) Stock Price Up 5.1% – Should You Buy?

FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) shares rose 5.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $208.25 and last traded at $210.0620. Approximately 125,438 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 960,178 shares. The stock had previously closed at $199.86.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $253.00 to $217.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $320.00 to $243.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. UBS Group decreased their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $425.00 to $380.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on FactSet Research Systems in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $279.85.

FactSet Research Systems Trading Up 5.8%

The firm has a market capitalization of $7.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.69. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $218.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $247.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.43.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The business services provider reported $4.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.37 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $611.02 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $604.78 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 24.48% and a return on equity of 30.25%. The company’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.28 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.65 EPS for the current year.

FactSet Research Systems Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. This is a positive change from FactSet Research Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.84%.

Institutional Trading of FactSet Research Systems

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FDS. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 5.6% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,727 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $785,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 27.6% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 972 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $442,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 188.2% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 98 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 58.6% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 138 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 15.6% in the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 5,247 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,347,000 after acquiring an additional 707 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.24% of the company’s stock.

FactSet Research Systems Company Profile

FactSet Research Systems Inc operates as a global provider of integrated financial data and analytics to the investment community. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, the company offers a unified platform that aggregates content from thousands of sources, delivering real-time and historical market data, company fundamentals, estimates, fixed-income information and proprietary analytics to portfolio managers, research analysts, investment bankers and risk officers.

The company’s core products include the FactSet Workstation, an application offering customizable screening, charting, portfolio analysis and news; APIs and data feeds for seamless integration into proprietary systems; and cloud-based solutions for thematic research and quantitative strategies.