Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) Receives $61.27 Consensus PT from Analysts

Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $60.6364.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Mizuho set a $65.00 target price on Equitable in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Equitable from $60.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Equitable from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Equitable from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $60.00 price target on shares of Equitable in a research note on Monday, January 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In related news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,790 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total value of $323,543.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 55,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,621,845.95. The trade was a 10.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.20, for a total value of $1,834,140.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 652,945 shares in the company, valued at $30,166,059. This represents a 5.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 157,280 shares of company stock valued at $7,455,677 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of EQH. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Equitable by 92.6% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 424 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Equitable by 21.2% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 312,021 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,504,000 after purchasing an additional 54,495 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in Equitable by 633.3% during the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,233 shares of the company’s stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 5,383 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 191.1% in the 2nd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 133,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,487,000 after purchasing an additional 87,618 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its stake in shares of Equitable by 29.9% in the 2nd quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 43,397 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,435,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equitable Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of EQH opened at $39.77 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $11.15 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13. Equitable has a 52 week low of $37.51 and a 52 week high of $56.61. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.92.

Equitable declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 11th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Equitable’s payout ratio is currently -22.41%.

Equitable Company Profile

Equitable Holdings, Inc (NYSE: EQH) is a leading provider of life insurance, annuities and retirement plan services in the United States. Through its insurance subsidiary, AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company, the firm offers a broad range of permanent and term life insurance products designed to help individuals and families manage risk and build wealth. In addition, Equitable provides fixed, variable and indexed annuity solutions to support income planning in retirement, as well as a suite of group retirement and pension plan services for employers and plan sponsors.

The company also maintains an asset management arm that delivers investment strategies across equities, fixed income and alternative asset classes for both retail and institutional clients.