BNP Paribas Financial Markets Increases Stock Position in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) by 2.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 41,771 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,065 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned about 0.11% of FactSet Research Systems worth $19,208,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FDS. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in FactSet Research Systems in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 144.4% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 66 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 750.0% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC grew its position in FactSet Research Systems by 6,700.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 68 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in FactSet Research Systems during the second quarter worth about $33,000. 91.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at FactSet Research Systems

In related news, EVP Christopher R. Ellis sold 13,952 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.15, for a total transaction of $6,364,204.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,726,367.25. This trade represents a 37.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Frederick Philip Snow sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $416.59, for a total transaction of $1,249,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,915 shares in the company, valued at $5,380,259.85. This represents a 18.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 26,984 shares of company stock valued at $12,230,877 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

FactSet Research Systems Price Performance

FDS stock opened at $490.67 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $469.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $437.45. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a twelve month low of $391.84 and a twelve month high of $499.87. The company has a market capitalization of $18.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.30, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The business services provider reported $3.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.12. FactSet Research Systems had a return on equity of 34.77% and a net margin of 24.38%. The firm had revenue of $562.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $547.06 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.93 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.2 EPS for the current year.

FactSet Research Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FDS has been the subject of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $471.00 to $521.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of FactSet Research Systems from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $420.00 to $380.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $435.00 to $503.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $451.00 to $469.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Evercore ISI began 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 on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $450.00.

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.