Alliancebernstein L.P. Trims Stock Position in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS)

Alliancebernstein L.P. lessened its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) by 11.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 40,743 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 5,041 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in FactSet Research Systems were worth $19,568,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FDS. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in FactSet Research Systems by 19.1% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 137 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 5,200.0% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 159 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in FactSet Research Systems by 19.2% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 205 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in FactSet Research Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $102,000. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 291 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $140,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 91.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FactSet Research Systems Stock Down 2.5 %

FDS stock opened at $405.64 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $450.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $464.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.08, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.82. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $391.84 and a fifty-two week high of $499.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.39.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The business services provider reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.17 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $570.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $570.65 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 24.16% and a return on equity of 33.92%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.22 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Gregory T. Moskoff sold 363 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $433.73, for a total transaction of $157,443.99. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 44 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,084.12. This trade represents a 89.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FDS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $409.00 to $390.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered FactSet Research Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $450.00 to $402.00 in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $469.00 to $493.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $503.00 target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $525.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $436.27.

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.