FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $489.67 and last traded at $489.67, with a volume of 41264 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $484.27.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on FDS. Redburn Atlantic downgraded FactSet Research Systems from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $420.00 to $380.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $435.00 to $503.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued an “inline” rating and a $470.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group increased their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $455.00 to $485.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on FactSet Research Systems from $440.00 to $471.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, FactSet Research Systems has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $443.57.

FactSet Research Systems Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $457.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $432.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a market cap of $18.68 billion, a PE ratio of 35.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.75.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 19th. The business services provider reported $3.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $562.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $547.06 million. FactSet Research Systems had a return on equity of 34.77% and a net margin of 24.38%. FactSet Research Systems’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.93 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. FactSet Research Systems’s payout ratio is 29.93%.

Insider Activity

In other FactSet Research Systems news, CEO Frederick Philip Snow sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $416.59, for a total value of $1,249,770.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,915 shares in the company, valued at $5,380,259.85. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Frederick Philip Snow sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $416.59, for a total value of $1,249,770.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 12,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,380,259.85. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Costigan sold 1,622 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $481.00, for a total transaction of $780,182.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 299 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $143,819. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 26,984 shares of company stock worth $12,230,877 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 12.7% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 2,727 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,239,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in FactSet Research Systems by 47.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 626 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $284,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 335.2% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,923 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,691,000 after acquiring an additional 4,562 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems during the first quarter worth approximately $188,000. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 19.8% during the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 998 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $454,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.24% of the company’s stock.

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.