Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Given New $316.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) had its target price trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $320.00 to $316.00 in a report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

EFX has been the topic of several other research reports. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Equifax from $315.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $350.00 price target on shares of Equifax in a report on Monday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Equifax from $304.00 to $283.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Equifax from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Equifax has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $310.88.

Equifax Stock Performance

EFX opened at $278.56 on Tuesday. Equifax has a 52-week low of $213.02 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. The company has a market cap of $34.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.57. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $260.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $274.76.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total value of $143,474.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,045,781.83. This represents a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in Equifax by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,816,186 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,415,284,000 after purchasing an additional 52,489 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in Equifax by 37.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,233,744 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $950,268,000 after purchasing an additional 880,162 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Equifax by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,885,661 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $845,041,000 after purchasing an additional 29,742 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Equifax by 95.9% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,617,574 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $412,239,000 after purchasing an additional 791,730 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Equifax by 76,913.8% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 960,362 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $282,212,000 after acquiring an additional 959,115 shares during the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.