EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT) Stock Rated “Moderate Buy” by Sell-Side Brokerages

EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-seven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eighteen have assigned a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $67.64.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of EQT from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of EQT to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of EQT in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $66.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of EQT from $72.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded EQT from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th.

Insider Activity at EQT

In other news, CEO Toby Rice sold 175,328 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.03, for a total value of $9,648,299.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,157,865 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $118,747,310.95. This represents a 7.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EQT

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of EQT. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in EQT in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Community Bank N.A. grew its position in EQT by 198.9% in the second quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 523 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its position in EQT by 76.0% in the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 528 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Wedbush Fund Advisers LLC grew its position in EQT by 251.8% in the second quarter. Wedbush Fund Advisers LLC now owns 577 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of EQT during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.81% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting EQT

Here are the key news stories impacting EQT this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Dividend increase supports income appeal: EQT recently raised its dividend again, which may bolster investor confidence and shareholder returns. However, the sustainability of future increases depends on natural-gas prices and cash generation. EQT’s Dividend Faces a Big Test
• Neutral Sentiment: Shares have rebounded from key support: The stock recently bounced from the familiar $49 level, but the rally is approaching historically bearish resistance. A failure to break through that resistance could lead to renewed volatility. EQT Stock Faces Historically Bearish Resistance
• Neutral Sentiment: Cleanaway transaction appears unrelated to EQT Corporation: Articles report that EQT Infrastructure agreed to acquire Australian waste-management company Cleanaway in a deal valued at approximately $6.5 billion, with reports also citing substantial acquisition financing. EQT Infrastructure and EQT Group are separate from the publicly traded U.S. natural-gas producer EQT Corporation, so the transaction should have limited direct effect on EQT stock. EQT Infrastructure to Acquire Cleanaway
• Negative Sentiment: Cash-flow risk remains a concern: Volatile natural-gas prices and the company’s prioritization of buybacks could make it harder to sustain additional dividend growth if operating cash flow weakens. This is a potential overhang for income-focused investors. EQT’s Dividend Faces a Big Test

EQT Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE EQT opened at $54.50 on Tuesday. EQT has a one year low of $47.94 and a one year high of $68.24. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $52.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.65 and a beta of 0.66.

EQT (NYSE:EQT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.02). EQT had a net margin of 28.44% and a return on equity of 9.31%. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.76 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 29.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that EQT will post 3.86 EPS for the current year.

EQT Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This is a boost from EQT’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.1650. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 4th. EQT’s payout ratio is presently 15.31%.

EQT Company Profile

EQT Corporation is a natural gas exploration and production company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company develops and operates unconventional oil and gas properties, with a primary focus on natural gas and natural gas liquids produced from shale formations.

EQT’s operations are concentrated in the Appalachian Basin, particularly the Marcellus and Utica shale formations in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio. Its activities include drilling, completion, production and management of natural gas wells, along with related gathering and infrastructure operations that support the transportation of its products to market.

The company traces its roots to Equitable Gas, founded in 1878, and has evolved through multiple stages of expansion and restructuring in the U.S.