Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Stock Rating Upgraded by BNP Paribas

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) was upgraded by BNP Paribas from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a $305.00 price objective on the credit services provider’s stock. BNP Paribas’ price objective would suggest a potential upside of 14.74% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on EFX. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Equifax from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Equifax from $305.00 to $284.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Equifax from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Equifax from $304.00 to $283.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $311.39.

Equifax Trading Up 0.2 %

Equifax stock opened at $265.81 on Monday. Equifax has a one year low of $213.02 and a one year high of $309.63. The business’s fifty day moving average is $267.78 and its 200 day moving average is $270.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.95 billion, a PE ratio of 59.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP John J. Kelley III sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.92, for a total value of $272,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,075,535.48. This trade represents a 8.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total transaction of $143,474.89. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,697 shares in the company, valued at $3,045,781.83. This trade represents a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 59,855 shares of company stock worth $16,187,044 in the last 90 days. 1.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equifax

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Equifax by 271.4% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 156 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of Equifax by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,998 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $727,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Equifax during the 2nd quarter worth $245,000. &PARTNERS raised its stake in Equifax by 222.7% in the second quarter. &PARTNERS now owns 4,186 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,015,000 after buying an additional 2,889 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Equifax by 13.7% in the second quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,517 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,338,000 after acquiring an additional 663 shares in the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Equifax

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.