Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Rating Increased to Neutral at BNP Paribas

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) was upgraded by analysts at BNP Paribas from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a $310.00 price objective on the credit services provider’s stock. BNP Paribas’ price target would suggest a potential upside of 3.65% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Equifax in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Equifax from $272.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Equifax to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Equifax from $300.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Equifax from $273.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Equifax presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $302.06.

Equifax Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EFX opened at $299.09 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $287.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $259.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.77, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.58. Equifax has a one year low of $159.95 and a one year high of $309.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The credit services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.09. Equifax had a net margin of 10.67% and a return on equity of 18.88%. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.71 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Equifax will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Equifax news, EVP Carla Chaney sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.85, for a total transaction of $845,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,065,118.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Equifax

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital International Investors increased its stake in Equifax by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 14,045,398 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,757,425,000 after purchasing an additional 342,170 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Equifax by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,033,448 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,754,228,000 after acquiring an additional 137,961 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Equifax by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,276,798 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,036,952,000 after acquiring an additional 200,665 shares during the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Equifax by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 3,856,248 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $953,612,000 after acquiring an additional 298,846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equifax by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 3,044,561 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $738,184,000 after acquiring an additional 70,091 shares during the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by 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.