Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Buys New Position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in shares of Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 13,871 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,076,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its holdings in Equifax by 8.5% during the second quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 26,675 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $6,916,000 after purchasing an additional 2,085 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its stake in shares of Equifax by 85.8% during the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 37,902 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $9,904,000 after buying an additional 17,501 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Equifax by 183.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 17,015 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,552,000 after buying an additional 11,002 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Equifax by 23.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,365 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,241,000 after acquiring an additional 2,499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equifax in the second quarter valued at about $15,646,000. 96.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,045,781.83. This trade represents a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Mark W. Begor sold 58,304 shares of Equifax stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.49, for a total transaction of $15,770,648.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 109,183 shares in the company, valued at $29,532,909.67. This trade represents a 34.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 59,855 shares of company stock worth $16,187,044. 1.57% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Equifax Trading Up 0.1 %

EFX stock opened at $261.56 on Friday. Equifax Inc. has a 52 week low of $213.02 and a 52 week high of $309.63. The company has a market capitalization of $32.42 billion, a PE ratio of 58.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.59. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $273.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $268.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The credit services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.76 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Equifax Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EFX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays raised their price target on Equifax from $300.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Equifax from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Equifax from $304.00 to $283.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Equifax in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their target price 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $306.74.

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.