Haverford Trust Co Sells 78 Shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS)

Haverford Trust Co cut its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) by 9.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 774 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 78 shares during the quarter. Haverford Trust Co’s holdings in FactSet Research Systems were worth $372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ICW Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,634 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,226,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 75,986 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,494,000 after acquiring an additional 4,283 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of FactSet Research Systems in the fourth quarter worth about $6,052,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 71,515 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $34,344,000 after purchasing an additional 1,752 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 44.4% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 15,493 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $7,441,000 after purchasing an additional 4,763 shares during the period. 91.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FactSet Research Systems Trading Up 1.8 %

FDS opened at $440.10 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $454.78 and a 200 day moving average of $464.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a 12 month low of $391.84 and a 12 month high of $499.87. The firm has a market cap of $16.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.77.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The business services provider reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.17 by $0.11. FactSet Research Systems had a return on equity of 33.92% and a net margin of 24.16%. The firm had revenue of $570.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $570.65 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.22 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.21 EPS for the current year.

FactSet Research Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Gregory T. Moskoff sold 363 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $433.73, for a total value of $157,443.99. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 44 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,084.12. This represents a 89.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $503.00 price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Monday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $409.00 to $390.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of FactSet Research Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $450.00 to $402.00 in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $469.00 to $493.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, FactSet Research Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $436.27.

About FactSet Research Systems

FactSet Research Systems Inc, a financial data company, provides integrated financial information and analytical applications to the investment community in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company delivers insight and information through the workflow solutions of research, analytics and trading, content and technology solutions, and wealth.