Mark Pearson Sells 39,700 Shares of Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Stock

Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.14, for a total value of $1,712,658.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 676,540 shares in the company, valued at $29,185,935.60. The trade was a 5.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Mark Pearson also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, October 20th, Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of Equitable stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.17, for a total value of $1,912,349.00.
• On Friday, September 19th, Mark Pearson sold 149 shares of Equitable stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.47, for a total value of $8,116.03.
• On Thursday, September 18th, Mark Pearson sold 39,551 shares of Equitable stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.22, for a total value of $2,144,455.22.

Equitable Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE:EQH traded down $0.33 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $43.67. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,426,061 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,854,557. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.87. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.39 and a 1 year high of $56.61. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $49.18 and a 200-day moving average of $51.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.51 billion, a PE ratio of -15.82 and a beta of 1.17.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by ($0.11). Equitable had a negative net margin of 5.80% and a positive return on equity of 107.71%. The business had revenue of $1.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.65 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.58 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 52.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 24th. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -39.13%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Equitable in the third quarter worth about $26,000. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Equitable during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in shares of Equitable by 592.6% in the 2nd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Equitable in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Equitable during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. 92.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on EQH shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Equitable from $67.00 to $61.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Equitable from $65.00 to $62.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Equitable from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Equitable in a research note on Monday. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Equitable from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $64.18.

About Equitable

Equitable Holdings, Inc, together with its consolidated subsidiaries, operates as a diversified financial services company worldwide. The company operates through six segments: Individual Retirement, Group Retirement, Investment Management and Research, Protection Solutions, Wealth Management, and Legacy.