Equifax (NYSE:EFX) Upgraded by Gordon Haskett to Strong-Buy Rating

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) was upgraded by research analysts at Gordon Haskett to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on EFX. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Equifax from $321.00 to $313.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Argus downgraded Equifax from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Equifax from $284.00 to $281.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Equifax from $340.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on shares of Equifax from $325.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Three 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $301.13.

Equifax Stock Performance

Shares of EFX opened at $243.15 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $259.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $273.44. The stock has a market cap of $30.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.34, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Equifax has a one year low of $213.02 and a one year high of $309.63.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.12. Equifax had a return on equity of 19.13% and a net margin of 10.63%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Equifax will post 7.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Equifax

In other news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total transaction of $143,474.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,697 shares in the company, valued at $3,045,781.83. The trade was a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equifax

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in Equifax by 39.0% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 10,843 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,775,000 after purchasing an additional 3,043 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Equifax by 2.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 184,890 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $54,329,000 after buying an additional 5,097 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in Equifax by 84.1% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,016,000 after buying an additional 3,135 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Equifax by 3.7% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 6,397 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,880,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares during the period. Finally, NS Partners Ltd raised its holdings in Equifax by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. NS Partners Ltd now owns 95,010 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $27,920,000 after acquiring an additional 2,094 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

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.