Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Stock: Insider John Gamble, Jr. Sells 4,000 Shares

Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX) EVP John Gamble, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.68, for a total value of $710,720.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 65,145 shares in the company, valued at $11,574,963.60. The trade was a 5.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Equifax Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:EFX opened at $187.96 on Wednesday. Equifax, Inc. has a twelve month low of $137.01 and a twelve month high of $228.67. The firm has a market cap of $22.00 billion, a PE ratio of 30.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The business has a fifty day moving average of $166.25 and a 200-day moving average of $177.14.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The credit services provider reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.06. Equifax had a return on equity of 22.48% and a net margin of 11.27%. The business had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.04 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Equifax, Inc. will post 8.50 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st were given a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 31st. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EFX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded shares of Equifax from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $214.00 to $235.00 in a research report on Friday, August 21st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Equifax from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Equifax from $230.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Equifax in a research note on Tuesday, October 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $201.00 target price on shares of Equifax in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $200.55.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equifax

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFX. Candriam S.C.A. lifted its holdings in Equifax by 15.4% during the third quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 13,766 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,896,000 after acquiring an additional 1,834 shares in the last quarter. Axiom Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Equifax by 8.9% in the third quarter. Axiom Investment Management LLC now owns 670 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in shares of Equifax by 119.0% in the third quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 255,777 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $35,159,000 after acquiring an additional 138,961 shares in the last quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP bought a new stake in shares of Equifax in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Equifax by 5.4% during the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,189 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $712,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Company Profile

Equifax Inc (NYSE: EFX) is a global data, analytics and technology company that provides information and services to help businesses, governments and consumers make informed financial and workforce decisions. The company is best known for its credit reporting activities, but its offerings also include identity verification, fraud prevention, income and employment verification, marketing services and risk management solutions.

Equifax provides consumer and commercial credit information, credit reports and related analytics to lenders and other businesses.