Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Given New $283.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) had its target price reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $304.00 to $283.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

EFX has been the topic of a number of other reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on Equifax in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $360.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Equifax from $250.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Equifax from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Equifax from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $310.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Equifax has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $306.74.

Equifax Price Performance

NYSE:EFX opened at $253.58 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $277.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $267.73. The firm has a market cap of $31.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.35, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.59. Equifax has a 52-week low of $208.67 and a 52-week high of $309.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The credit services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.44 billion. Equifax had a return on equity of 18.56% and a net margin of 10.07%. Equifax’s revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.76 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Equifax will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.62%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio is 34.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 58,304 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.49, for a total value of $15,770,648.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 109,183 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,532,909.67. This represents a 34.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John J. Kelley III sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.92, for a total value of $272,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,269 shares in the company, valued at $3,075,535.48. This represents a 8.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equifax

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFX. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Equifax in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in Equifax during the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Equifax by 76.1% during the second quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Equifax during the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its position in Equifax by 138.2% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 131 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Company Profile

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.