Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the thirteen analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, ten have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $64.3333.

Several research firms have weighed in on EQH. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Equitable in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Equitable from $67.00 to $61.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Equitable from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company 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 report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Equitable from $65.00 to $62.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 7th.

Equitable Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE EQH opened at $47.79 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $46.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.87, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13. Equitable has a twelve month low of $41.39 and a twelve month high of $56.61. The stock has a market cap of $13.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.32 and a beta of 1.12.

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

Equitable Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 24th were paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 24th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Equitable’s payout ratio is -39.13%.

Insider Transactions at Equitable

In other news, CFO Robin M. Raju sold 36,888 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total transaction of $1,991,952.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 140,258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,573,932. This trade represents a 20.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.17, for a total value of $1,912,349.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 689,040 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,191,056.80. The trade was a 5.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 140,958 shares of company stock valued at $6,775,030. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Groupe la Francaise grew its stake in shares of Equitable by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 2,949 shares of the company’s stock worth $165,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. BSW Wealth Partners lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 5.9% in the second quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 4,259 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Equitable by 2.1% during the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 13,473 shares of the company’s stock worth $756,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in shares of Equitable by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 2,634 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Equitable by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 4,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $253,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Equitable Company Profile

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.