FactSet Research Systems’ (FDS) “Sector Perform” Rating Reaffirmed at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada reiterated their sector perform rating on shares of FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $503.00 price objective on the business services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $435.00 to $503.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $471.00 to $521.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued an “inline” rating and a $470.00 price objective for the company. Redburn Atlantic cut FactSet Research Systems from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their target price for the company from $420.00 to $380.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $485.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $453.69.

FactSet Research Systems Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of FactSet Research Systems stock opened at $483.52 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.37 billion, a PE ratio of 34.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.76. FactSet Research Systems has a 52 week low of $391.84 and a 52 week high of $499.87. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $477.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $443.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $4.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.25 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $568.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $565.14 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 24.38% and a return on equity of 34.77%. FactSet Research Systems’s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.12 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that FactSet Research Systems will post 17.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.82%.

Insider Activity at FactSet Research Systems

In related news, insider John Costigan sold 1,622 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $481.00, for a total value of $780,182.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 299 shares in the company, valued at approximately $143,819. This represents a 84.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Frederick Philip Snow sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.09, for a total value of $1,365,270.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,910,253.83. This trade represents a 18.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 23,984 shares of company stock worth $10,981,107. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FactSet Research Systems

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in FactSet Research Systems by 3.0% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 48,791 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $22,437,000 after purchasing an additional 1,443 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 12,314 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,687,000 after buying an additional 669 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 92.8% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 1,336 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $614,000 after buying an additional 643 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 2,535 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,166,000 after buying an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in FactSet Research Systems during the 3rd quarter valued at $403,000. 91.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About FactSet Research Systems

FactSet Research Systems Inc, a financial data company, provides integrated financial information and analytical applications to the investment community in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company delivers insight and information through the workflow solutions of research, analytics and trading, content and technology solutions, and wealth.