Stock of the Day

November 19, 2020

Equifax (EFX)

$238.04
-$3.18 (-1.3%)
Market Cap: $29.90B

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. The USIS segment provides consumer and commercial information services, such as credit information and credit scoring, credit modeling and portfolio analytics, locate, fraud detection and prevention, identity verification, and other consulting services; mortgage services; financial marketing services; identity management services; and credit monitoring products. The International segment offers information service products, which include consumer and commercial services, such as credit and financial information, and credit scoring and modeling; and credit and other marketing products and services, as well as offers information, technology, and other services to support debt collections and recovery management. The company serves customers in financial services, mortgage, retail, telecommunications, utilities, automotive, brokerage, healthcare, and insurance industries, as well as government agencies. It operates in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, India, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Spain, the United Kingdom, Uruguay, and the United States. The company was founded in 1899 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Equifax Bull Case

Here are some ways that investors could benefit from investing in Equifax Inc.:

  • Equifax Inc. reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.12 for the latest quarter, meeting analysts' expectations, which indicates strong financial performance and stability.
  • The company has a solid return on equity of 19.13%, suggesting effective management and profitability relative to shareholder equity.
  • Equifax Inc. recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.39 per share, translating to an annualized dividend of $1.56 and a yield of 0.62%, providing a steady income stream for investors.
  • Institutional investors hold a significant 96.20% of Equifax Inc.'s stock, indicating strong confidence from large financial entities in the company's future prospects.
  • The current stock price is around $260.39, which is near its 50-day moving average of $261.02, suggesting that the stock is trading in a stable range and may present a good entry point for investors.

Equifax Bear Case

Investors should be bearish about investing in Equifax Inc. for these reasons:

  • The stock has experienced a 1-year high of $309.63 and a low of $213.02, indicating volatility that may concern risk-averse investors.
  • Equifax Inc. has a net margin of 10.63%, which, while positive, may be lower compared to industry peers, suggesting potential challenges in maintaining profitability.
  • Insider ownership is relatively low at 1.57%, which may raise concerns about alignment between management and shareholder interests.
  • Recent insider selling, including a transaction where an executive vice president sold 551 shares, could signal a lack of confidence in the stock's short-term performance.
  • The dividend payout ratio is 32.30%, which, while sustainable, may limit the company's ability to reinvest profits into growth opportunities.

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