Cerity Partners LLC Purchases Shares of 803 FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS)

Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 803 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $382,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in FactSet Research Systems by 28.8% in the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 103 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC raised its position in FactSet Research Systems by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 487 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $233,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Institutional & Family Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 0.3% during the third quarter. Institutional & Family Asset Management LLC now owns 9,660 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,224,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co boosted its position in FactSet Research Systems by 23.0% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 155 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Palisade Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Palisade Asset Management LLC now owns 1,185 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $518,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. 91.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FactSet Research Systems Price Performance

FDS stock opened at $421.47 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $450.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $454.98. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a 52-week low of $380.96 and a 52-week high of $488.64. The company has a market capitalization of $16.06 billion, a PE ratio of 33.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 21st. The business services provider reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.83 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $545.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $547.93 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 22.72% and a return on equity of 34.36%. Analysts predict that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 15.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were paid a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. FactSet Research Systems’s payout ratio is 31.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “hold” rating and set a $469.00 price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Friday, March 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on FactSet Research Systems from $377.00 to $419.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $447.00 to $458.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $464.00 price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $442.70.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Frederick Philip Snow sold 3,000 shares of FactSet Research Systems stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $476.02, for a total value of $1,428,060.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,915 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,147,798.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.00% 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.