Equifax Inc. (EFX) To Go Ex-Dividend on February 21st

Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 5th,RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of 0.39 per share by the credit services provider on Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st.

Equifax has a dividend payout ratio of 14.5% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Equifax to earn $8.74 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.56 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 17.8%.

Equifax Stock Performance

NYSE:EFX opened at $247.04 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $261.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $274.90. Equifax has a 1-year low of $213.02 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. The stock has a market cap of $30.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.90, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.58.

Equifax (NYSE:EFX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12. Equifax had a return on equity of 18.56% and a net margin of 10.07%. Research analysts anticipate that Equifax will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equifax

In related news, EVP Lisa M. Nelson sold 551 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.39, for a total transaction of $143,474.89. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,697 shares in the company, valued at $3,045,781.83. The trade was a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 1.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on EFX. BNP Paribas raised Equifax from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Equifax from $320.00 to $316.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Equifax from $340.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $350.00 price target on shares of Equifax in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Equifax from $290.00 to $333.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Two 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 presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $310.41.

Equifax Company Profile

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.