Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH Position Boosted by Thornburg Investment Management Inc.

Thornburg Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,867,643 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,370 shares during the period. Equitable comprises approximately 3.2% of Thornburg Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. owned about 1.70% of Equitable worth $247,179,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of EQH. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in shares of Equitable by 592.6% in the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 561 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Equitable in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Hilltop National Bank purchased a new position in Equitable in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Equitable by 92.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 424 shares during the period. Finally, MAI Capital Management raised its holdings in Equitable by 64.0% during the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Equitable

In related news, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 4,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.27, for a total value of $203,261.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 15,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $738,593.75. This represents a 21.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 30,000 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total value of $1,429,500.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 99,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,762,998.70. This trade represents a 23.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 157,280 shares of company stock worth $7,455,677. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 16th. Mizuho set a $65.00 target price on Equitable in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Equitable from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.27.

Equitable Stock Performance

Shares of EQH opened at $41.17 on Thursday. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $39.53 and a 12-month high of $56.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42. The company has a market cap of $11.80 billion, a PE ratio of -8.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $46.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.46.

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

Equitable Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.6%. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio is presently -22.41%.

About Equitable

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.