Virtu Financial LLC Has $472,000 Stock Position in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX)

Virtu Financial LLC lessened its stake in Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) by 80.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,854 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 7,666 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Equifax were worth $472,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in shares of Equifax by 40.0% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 1,158 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Equifax by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 59,533 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $15,172,000 after buying an additional 2,494 shares during the period. Vinva Investment Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Equifax during the fourth quarter worth $755,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Equifax during the fourth quarter valued at $140,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. boosted its holdings in Equifax by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 20,213 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,151,000 after acquiring an additional 574 shares during the last quarter. 96.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Equifax Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Equifax stock opened at $243.48 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Equifax Inc. has a 12-month low of $213.02 and a 12-month high of $309.63. The company has a market capitalization of $30.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.41, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.65. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $252.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $264.56.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12. Equifax had a return on equity of 19.13% and a net margin of 10.63%. On average, analysts forecast that Equifax Inc. will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equifax Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. Equifax’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on EFX shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Argus cut shares of Equifax from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on Equifax from $286.00 to $279.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Equifax from $340.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, BNP Paribas cut Equifax from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, March 14th. Four research 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $298.56.

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.