Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP Reduces Stake in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS)

Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP lessened its stake in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) by 16.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,156 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 227 shares during the quarter. Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP’s holdings in FactSet Research Systems were worth $551,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FDS. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in FactSet Research Systems in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 71.4% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 84 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 820.0% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 92 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in FactSet Research Systems by 69.4% in the fourth quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 83 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in FactSet Research Systems by 28.8% during the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 103 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. 91.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other FactSet Research Systems news, CEO Frederick Philip Snow sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $452.10, for a total value of $1,356,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 12,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,838,871.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

FactSet Research Systems Stock Up 0.7 %

FDS traded up $2.89 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $422.83. The stock had a trading volume of 294,688 shares, compared to its average volume of 242,859. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $452.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $455.44. The company has a market capitalization of $16.12 billion, a PE ratio of 33.48, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 1.79. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a twelve month low of $380.96 and a twelve month high of $488.64.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 21st. The business services provider reported $4.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.83 by $0.39. FactSet Research Systems had a return on equity of 34.36% and a net margin of 22.72%. The company had revenue of $545.95 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $547.93 million. On average, research analysts predict that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 15.83 earnings per share for the current year.

FactSet Research Systems Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on FDS. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $469.00 target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $377.00 to $419.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $430.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $464.00 price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $447.00 to $458.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, FactSet Research Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $442.70.

FactSet Research Systems 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.