MetLife Investment Management LLC Decreases Position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

MetLife Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 2.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,283 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 818 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Equifax were worth $9,781,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Equifax in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Equifax by 76.1% during the second quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Equifax during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Equifax by 138.2% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 131 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Community Trust NA bought a new stake in shares of Equifax in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.20% of the company’s stock.

Equifax Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EFX opened at $261.19 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $275.28 and its 200 day moving average is $268.43. The stock has a market cap of $32.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 1.59. Equifax Inc. has a 1-year low of $209.68 and a 1-year high of $309.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The credit services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.01. Equifax had a net margin of 10.07% and a return on equity of 18.56%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.76 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Equifax Inc. will post 7.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EFX has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Equifax from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Barclays lifted their target price on Equifax from $300.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on shares of Equifax from $315.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Equifax from $250.00 to $271.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Equifax in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $360.00 target price on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equifax currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $306.74.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 58,304 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 109,183 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,532,909.67. This trade represents a 34.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total transaction of $143,474.89. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,045,781.83. This represents a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 59,855 shares of company stock valued at $16,187,044. 1.66% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.