Parsec Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Equifax, Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 2.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 131,391 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,622 shares during the period. Equifax makes up 1.4% of Parsec Financial Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Parsec Financial Management Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of Equifax worth $18,056,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Equifax by 3.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,433,584 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,563,429,000 after buying an additional 373,774 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in shares of Equifax by 1,540.8% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 9,280,680 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,269,041,000 after buying an additional 8,715,062 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Equifax by 3.7% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,997,177 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $820,055,000 after buying an additional 212,392 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Equifax by 2.6% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,351,242 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $731,730,000 after buying an additional 134,056 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Equifax by 99.4% in the first quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,305,063 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $178,454,000 after buying an additional 650,550 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.55% of the company’s stock.
Equifax, Inc. (EFX) traded down 0.62% on Thursday, reaching $142.05. The company had a trading volume of 295,870 shares. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.09 and a beta of 0.91. Equifax, Inc. has a 12 month low of $110.87 and a 12 month high of $147.02. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $141.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.37.
Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 26th. The credit services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $856.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $860.48 million. Equifax had a return on equity of 24.88% and a net margin of 17.44%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.43 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Equifax, Inc. will post $6.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 25th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 23rd. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio is 33.05%.
A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on EFX shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Equifax in a research report on Wednesday. Cowen and Company reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $151.00 target price on shares of Equifax in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Deutsche Bank AG reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $160.00 target price (up from $140.00) on shares of Equifax in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. BidaskClub raised Equifax from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 17th. Finally, Argus started coverage on Equifax in a research report on Tuesday, June 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $166.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $145.45.
In other Equifax news, insider Rodolfo O. Ploder sold 1,719 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.70, for a total value of $250,458.30. Following the sale, the insider now owns 43,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,359,513.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO John W. Gamble, Jr. sold 6,500 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.60, for a total value of $946,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,078 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,126,556.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 26,219 shares of company stock worth $3,691,098 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.29% of the company’s stock.
About Equifax
Equifax Inc is a global provider of information solutions and human resources business process outsourcing services for businesses, governments and consumers. The Company operates in four segments: U.S. Information Solutions (USIS), International, Workforce Solutions and Global Consumer Solutions. Its products and services are based on databases of consumer and business information derived from various sources, including credit, financial assets, telecommunications and utility payments, employment, income, demographic and marketing data.
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