EQT (NYSE:EQT) CEO Toby Rice Sells 175,328 Shares

EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT) CEO Toby Rice sold 175,328 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.03, for a total transaction of $9,648,299.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,157,865 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $118,747,310.95. This trade represents a 7.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

EQT Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of EQT traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $53.18. The stock had a trading volume of 7,337,089 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,478,784. The company has a market cap of $33.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.34 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $51.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.53. EQT Corporation has a 1-year low of $47.94 and a 1-year high of $68.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

EQT (NYSE:EQT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.76 billion. EQT had a return on equity of 9.31% and a net margin of 28.44%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 29.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.45 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that EQT Corporation will post 4.06 earnings per share for the current year.

EQT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 5th will be given a dividend of $0.165 per share. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 5th. EQT’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.31%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EQT

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new position in EQT during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of EQT during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Wedbush Fund Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of EQT by 251.8% during the second quarter. Wedbush Fund Advisers LLC now owns 577 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in EQT in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in EQT by 35.4% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 773 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. 90.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Stephens increased their price target on shares of EQT from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of EQT from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of EQT from $65.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of EQT from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on EQT from $70.00 to $67.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, EQT currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.48.

About EQT

EQT Corporation (NYSE: EQT) is a U.S.-based energy company focused on the exploration, development and production of natural gas. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the company concentrates its upstream operations in the Appalachian Basin, producing from major shale formations including the Marcellus and Utica. EQT’s primary product is natural gas, with production activities supported by associated liquids and conventional gas assets where applicable.

In addition to drilling and well development, EQT operates and coordinates the infrastructure and commercial activities necessary to bring gas to market.