Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Upgraded to Hold at Argus

Argus upgraded shares of Equifax (NYSE:EFX) to a hold rating in a report published on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Equifax from $253.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Equifax from $265.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Equifax from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Equifax from $235.00 to $208.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on shares of Equifax from $295.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $240.33.

Equifax Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE:EFX opened at $206.44 on Monday. Equifax has a 52 week low of $166.02 and a 52 week high of $281.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $206.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $221.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market cap of $24.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.55.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. Equifax had a return on equity of 19.27% and a net margin of 10.87%.Equifax’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.12 earnings per share. Equifax has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.300-8.700 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.630-1.730 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Equifax will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be paid a $0.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. This is a positive change from Equifax’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio is 37.59%.

Insider Activity at Equifax

In related news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 37,791 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.89, for a total value of $7,629,624.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 230,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,536,856.34. The trade was a 14.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jamil Farshchi sold 1,167 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.87, for a total value of $233,248.29. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,968,617.03. This represents a 2.84% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 49,671 shares of company stock worth $9,960,181. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equifax

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EFX. Country Trust Bank purchased a new stake in Equifax during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Equifax during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Equifax by 612.5% in the fourth quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 114 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Equifax in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in Equifax during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Equifax Company Profile

Equifax Inc (NYSE: EFX) is a global data, analytics and technology company that specializes in consumer and commercial credit reporting, decisioning tools and identity solutions. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Equifax is one of the three major consumer credit reporting agencies in the United States and provides credit information and related services to lenders, employers, governments and consumers worldwide.

The company’s offerings include consumer credit reports and scores, credit monitoring and identity protection services, and a range of business-oriented products for risk management, fraud detection and compliance.