This $24 Million Buy Amid a 45% Stock Drop Signals Conviction in a High-Margin Data Business
Key Points
McDonald Capital bought 86,891 shares of FactSet Research Systems, a transaction estimated at $24.39 million based on average closing prices during the fourth quarter.
Meanwhile, the quarter-end position value rose by $25.58 million, reflecting both the trade and share price movements.
As of September 30, the fund reported holding 185,744 FDS shares valued at $53.90 million.
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On January 30, McDonald Capital Investors disclosed a buy of 86,891 shares of FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS), an estimated $24.39 million trade based on quarterly average pricing.
What happened
According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission dated January 30, McDonald Capital Investors increased its stake in FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS) by 86,891 shares during the fourth quarter. The estimated transaction value, based on the quarter’s average closing price, was approximately $24.39 million. Meanwhile, the fund’s quarter-end position was valued at $53.90 million, up $25.58 million from the prior quarter, reflecting both share additions and price changes.
What else to know
The post-trade stake in FDS is 3.31% of McDonald Capital Investors’ $1.63 billion in reportable U.S. equity assets as of December 31.
Top holdings after the filing:
- NYSE: PGR: $201.24 million (12.3% of AUM)
- NASDAQ: REGN: $160.73 million (9.9% of AUM)
- NYSE: BRK-B: $154.83 million (9.5% of AUM)
- NYSE: BN: $123.86 million (7.6% of AUM)
- NASDAQ: AMZN: $118.12 million (7.2% of AUM)
As of January 29, FDS shares were priced at $252.79, down 45.0% over the past year and vastly underperforming the S&P 500 by 60.35 percentage points.
Company overview
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Revenue (TTM) | $2.36 billion |
| Net income (TTM) | $599.60 million |
| Dividend yield | 1.71% |
| Price (as of January 29) | $252.79 |
Company snapshot
- FactSet Research Systems provides integrated financial data, analytics, and workflow solutions for investment professionals, including research, analytics and trading, and content and technology services.
- The company serves asset managers, investment banks, wealth advisors, corporate clients, and other financial institutions globally.
- It operates a subscription-driven model, offering scalable solutions that integrate data, analytics, and technology to enhance client decision-making.
FactSet Research Systems is a leading provider of financial information and analytics, supporting the investment process for institutional clients worldwide. Its competitive strength lies in comprehensive data coverage and seamless workflow integration for the global financial community.
What this transaction means for investors
FactSet is not a momentum story or a cyclical rebound play, but it is a subscription-driven data platform embedded deep inside institutional workflows, where switching costs are high and renewal rates are historically strong.
Despite the stock’s sharp one-year decline, the underlying business remains intact. In its latest quarterly results, FactSet reported continued organic revenue growth driven by wealth and institutional clients, alongside operating margins that remain well above most software peers. The company also maintained disciplined expense control and strong free cash flow conversion, reinforcing the durability of its model even as financial firms moderate spending.
The position size is meaningful but not dominant, fitting alongside other long-duration compounders in the portfolio such as Progressive, Regeneron, and Berkshire Hathaway. In other words, this is not a concentrated bet on a turnaround, but an incremental increase in exposure to a business that monetizes data through recurring contracts rather than transaction volume.
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Jonathan Ponciano has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, Brookfield, Brookfield Corporation, FactSet Research Systems, Progressive, and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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