FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) Plans $1.04 Quarterly Dividend

FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) declared a quarterly dividend on Monday, August 5th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a dividend of 1.04 per share by the business services provider on Thursday, September 19th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 29th.

FactSet Research Systems has raised its dividend by an average of 8.1% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 26 years. FactSet Research Systems has a payout ratio of 23.8% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect FactSet Research Systems to earn $17.49 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.16 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 23.8%.

FactSet Research Systems Price Performance

FDS stock traded down $12.72 during trading on Monday, hitting $401.84. 205,551 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 262,112. FactSet Research Systems has a one year low of $391.84 and a one year high of $488.64. The stock has a market cap of $15.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $414.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $439.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 21st. The business services provider reported $4.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.91 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $552.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $552.71 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 23.56% and a return on equity of 34.48%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.79 EPS. Equities analysts expect that FactSet Research Systems will post 16.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Frederick Philip Snow sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $1,200,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,915 shares in the company, valued at $5,166,000. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Frederick Philip Snow sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $1,200,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,915 shares in the company, valued at $5,166,000. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Goran Skoko sold 6,215 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $436.40, for a total transaction of $2,712,226.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,262 shares in the company, valued at $2,296,336.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 18,647 shares of company stock worth $7,829,442. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FDS has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $455.00 to $378.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $430.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $464.00 price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of FactSet Research Systems from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $500.00 to $407.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $432.00.

FactSet Research Systems Company Profile

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.