Equifax (NYSE:EFX) PT Raised to $271.00 at Morgan Stanley

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) had its target price increased by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $250.00 to $271.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective would indicate a potential downside of 11.65% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Equifax from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Equifax in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Equifax from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Equifax from $272.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Equifax from $255.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Equifax has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $301.59.

Equifax Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of EFX stock opened at $306.75 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The company has a market cap of $37.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 68.32, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.58. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $282.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $258.26. Equifax has a 1-year low of $159.95 and a 1-year high of $308.54.

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

Insider Transactions at Equifax

In related news, EVP Carla Chaney sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.85, for a total transaction of $845,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,065,118.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equifax

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. purchased a new position in Equifax during the 2nd quarter valued at about $257,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Equifax during the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,967,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in Equifax by 66.4% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,993 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $483,000 after purchasing an additional 795 shares in the last quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Equifax in the 2nd quarter valued at about $218,000. Finally, Creative Planning raised its position in Equifax by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 34,929 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $8,469,000 after purchasing an additional 1,303 shares in the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.