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FactSet (FDS) Gains 21% in the Past Six Months: Here's How

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FactSet Research Systems Inc. (FDS - Free Report) has had an impressive run in the past six-month period. The stock has gained 21.2%, outperforming the 10.4% rise of the industry it belongs to and the 7% rise of the S&P 500 Composite.

FDS has an impressive Growth Score of B. This style score condenses all the essential metrics from a company’s financial statements to get a true sense of the quality and sustainability of its growth. The company has long-term growth rate of 10.3%.

Factors Behind the Surge

FactSet’s strategic partnerships have been boding well. FactSet and Irwin partnered to integrate Irwin's investor relations CRM with FactSet's Workstation, thus creating a unified solution for IR professionals. Meanwhile, FactSet collaborated with LightPoint, offering hedge funds an integrated front-to-back solution and enhancing trade workflows.

Additionally, FactSet collaborated with Coin Metrics, integrating digital assets data into its solutions and empowering financial professionals to monitor digital assets, analyze portfolios and stay informed about market trends. Ancora successfully implemented the joint solution, reducing technology ownership costs and enabling scalable operations.

In the fiscal year 2022, FactSet consistently rewarded its shareholders by repurchasing shares amounting to $18.64 million and distributing dividends totaling $125.9 million. In the preceding fiscal years of 2021 and 2020, share repurchases amounted to $264.7 million and $199.6 million, while dividends paid were $117.9 million and $110.4 million, respectively. These actions reflected the company's dedication to shareholder value and confidence in its business.

The acquisition of idaciti in 2022 aligned with FactSet's ongoing efforts to digitally transform its content collection infrastructure, accelerating the availability of crucial datasets for future workflows. Additionally, the 2022 acquisition of CUSIP Global Services bolstered the company's global position in capital markets.

FactSet upholds an organizational culture centered around performance, prioritizing talent and technology. The company is committed to enhancing its digital platform and providing clients with cloud-based data and analytics. Emphasis is placed on leveraging technology extensively to expedite the development of products and the collection of content.

Zacks Rank

FDS currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Stocks to Consider

Here are a few better-ranked stocks from the Business Services sector:

Gartner (IT - Free Report) : TheZacks Consensus Estimate of Gartner’s 2023 revenues indicates 7.9% growth from the year-ago figure while earnings are expected to decline 1.9%. The company beat the consensus estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with an average surprise of 34.4%.

IT presently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

DocuSign(DOCU - Free Report) : The Zacks Consensus Estimate of DocuSign’s 2023 revenues indicates 9.2% growth from the year-ago figure while earnings are expected to grow 41.4%. The company beat the consensus estimate in three of the past four quarters and matched on one instance, the average surprise being 5.4%.

DOCU presently flaunts a Zacks Rank of 1.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (BR - Free Report) : The Zacks Consensus Estimate of Broadridge’s 2023 revenues indicates 7.7% growth from the year-ago figure while earnings are expected to grow 10.1%. The company beat the consensus estimate in three of the past four quarters and matched on one instance, the average surprise being 5.4%.

BR holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present.

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