Zacks: Analysts Expect FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) Will Post Earnings of $3.18 Per Share

Equities analysts expect FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS – Get Rating) to post earnings of $3.18 per share for the current quarter, according to Zacks. Six analysts have made estimates for FactSet Research Systems’ earnings. The lowest EPS estimate is $3.09 and the highest is $3.26. FactSet Research Systems reported earnings of $2.72 per share during the same quarter last year, which would indicate a positive year over year growth rate of 16.9%. The firm is expected to report its next earnings report before the market opens on Monday, January 1st.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that FactSet Research Systems will report full-year earnings of $13.00 per share for the current financial year, with EPS estimates ranging from $12.88 to $13.13. For the next year, analysts expect that the firm will post earnings of $14.33 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $13.97 to $14.80. Zacks Investment Research’s earnings per share averages are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side analysts that cover FactSet Research Systems.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 24th. The business services provider reported $3.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.96 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $431.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $427.09 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 25.15% and a return on equity of 42.88%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.72 earnings per share.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $432.00 target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Friday, March 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $453.00 to $468.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $346.00 to $362.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 6th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $432.00 to $454.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 28th. Finally, Redburn Partners started coverage on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Tuesday, May 17th. They issued a “sell” rating for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $444.20.

In related news, Director Joseph Zimmel sold 1,207 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $443.11, for a total transaction of $534,833.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,126,385.62. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Robin Ann Abrams sold 1,767 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $418.98, for a total transaction of $740,337.66. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,531 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,898,398.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 28,277 shares of company stock valued at $12,184,602. Corporate insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FDS. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,298,111 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,866,025,000 after purchasing an additional 52,604 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. raised its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 3,694,956 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,604,165,000 after purchasing an additional 89,401 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,988,080 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $863,125,000 after purchasing an additional 32,550 shares in the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd raised its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,168,264 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $507,202,000 after purchasing an additional 64,569 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 40.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 827,816 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $401,813,000 after purchasing an additional 236,744 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.99% of the company’s stock.

NYSE FDS opened at $379.32 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.38 billion, a PE ratio of 34.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a fifty day moving average of $403.16 and a 200 day moving average of $425.93. FactSet Research Systems has a 1 year low of $319.65 and a 1 year high of $495.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 3.72 and a quick ratio of 3.72.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 31st will be paid a $0.89 dividend. This is a boost from FactSet Research Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 27th. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio is 32.72%.

About FactSet Research Systems (Get Rating)

FactSet Research Systems Inc, a financial data and analytics 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.

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