Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Price Target Lowered to $284.00 at Stifel Nicolaus

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) had its price objective cut by equities researchers at Stifel Nicolaus from $305.00 to $284.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective indicates a potential upside of 16.43% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on EFX. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Equifax in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $360.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Equifax from $304.00 to $283.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays boosted their price target on Equifax from $300.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $350.00 price objective on shares of Equifax in a report on Monday, October 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $306.74.

Equifax Stock Performance

NYSE:EFX traded down $1.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $243.92. 285,889 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 869,098. Equifax has a 1 year low of $208.25 and a 1 year 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 50 day simple moving average of $280.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $267.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.59.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The credit services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.01. Equifax had a return on equity of 18.56% and a net margin of 10.07%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.76 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Equifax will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Equifax

In other Equifax news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 58,304 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.49, for a total value of $15,770,648.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 109,183 shares in the company, valued at $29,532,909.67. This represents a 34.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John J. Kelley III sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.92, for a total transaction of $272,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,269 shares in the company, valued at $3,075,535.48. This trade represents a 8.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.66% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equifax

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Conning Inc. raised its position in Equifax by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 848 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $206,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Equifax by 1.2% during the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 3,726 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $903,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equifax by 13.5% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 371 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $109,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Thompson Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Equifax by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc. now owns 15,464 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,749,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust boosted its position in Equifax by 3.0% during the third quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,665 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $489,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.