Analysts Set FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) Price Target at $453.46

Shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) have been assigned an average rating of “Reduce” from the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $453.46.

Several research analysts have issued reports on FDS shares. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $521.00 to $518.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of FactSet Research Systems from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $420.00 to $380.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $373.00 to $409.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set an “inline” rating and a $470.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on FactSet Research Systems from $435.00 to $503.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John Costigan sold 1,622 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $481.00, for a total transaction of $780,182.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 299 shares in the company, valued at $143,819. This trade represents a 84.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FactSet Research Systems

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FDS. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,932,376 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $888,603,000 after acquiring an additional 42,303 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in FactSet Research Systems by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,001,924 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $460,467,000 after purchasing an additional 8,376 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 12.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 493,350 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $226,867,000 after purchasing an additional 52,741 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 1.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 373,386 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $171,702,000 after buying an additional 4,113 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 21.0% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 340,494 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $164,653,000 after buying an additional 59,173 shares during the last quarter. 91.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FactSet Research Systems Stock Down 1.8 %

NYSE:FDS opened at $466.68 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $481.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $449.37. The company has a market capitalization of $17.73 billion, a PE ratio of 33.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.76. FactSet Research Systems has a 1-year low of $391.84 and a 1-year high of $499.87.

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

FactSet Research Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. FactSet Research Systems’s payout ratio is presently 29.82%.

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.