HighTower Advisors LLC Reduces Position in FactSet Research Systems Inc. $FDS

HighTower Advisors LLC decreased its position in FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 75,025 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 13,144 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC owned about 0.20% of FactSet Research Systems worth $21,494,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in FDS. First Horizon Corp purchased a new stake in FactSet Research Systems during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of FactSet Research Systems during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 53.4% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 112 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 4,300.0% during the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 88 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of FactSet Research Systems by 178.0% in the third quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. 91.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FactSet Research Systems Price Performance

Shares of FDS stock opened at $198.72 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market cap of $7.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.64, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s fifty day moving average is $264.66 and its 200 day moving average is $296.04. FactSet Research Systems Inc. has a twelve month low of $185.00 and a twelve month high of $474.79.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The business services provider reported $4.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.36 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $607.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $599.69 million. FactSet Research Systems had a net margin of 25.40% and a return on equity of 30.49%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.37 EPS. FactSet Research Systems has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.900-17.600 EPS. Research analysts expect that FactSet Research Systems Inc. will post 17.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FactSet Research Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. FactSet Research Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.99%.

FactSet Research Systems declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, December 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $600.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to buy up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $290.00 price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $320.00 price target on shares of FactSet Research Systems in a report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of FactSet Research Systems from $311.00 to $305.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, FactSet Research Systems presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $298.54.

Insider Activity at FactSet Research Systems

In other news, Director Malcolm Frank sold 2,572 shares of FactSet Research Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.70, for a total transaction of $760,540.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $259,920.30. This trade represents a 74.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Laurie Siegel sold 2,572 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.25, for a total value of $761,955.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,037 shares in the company, valued at $307,211.25. The trade was a 71.27% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

FactSet Research Systems Company Profile

FactSet Research Systems Inc operates as a global provider of integrated financial data and analytics to the investment community. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, the company offers a unified platform that aggregates content from thousands of sources, delivering real-time and historical market data, company fundamentals, estimates, fixed-income information and proprietary analytics to portfolio managers, research analysts, investment bankers and risk officers.

The company’s core products include the FactSet Workstation, an application offering customizable screening, charting, portfolio analysis and news; APIs and data feeds for seamless integration into proprietary systems; and cloud-based solutions for thematic research and quantitative strategies.