Equitable (NYSE:EQH) CEO Mark Pearson Sells 1,387 Shares

Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) CEO Mark Pearson sold 1,387 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.03, for a total value of $55,521.61. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 801,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,091,370.49. The trade was a 0.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

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

• On Wednesday, April 8th, Mark Pearson sold 38,313 shares of Equitable stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.05, for a total value of $1,534,435.65.
• On Tuesday, January 20th, Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of Equitable stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.20, for a total value of $1,834,140.00.

Equitable Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of EQH traded down $0.30 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $41.68. 3,032,547 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,681,046. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.69 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.65, a PEG ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 1.11. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $40.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $44.79. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $35.19 and a 1 year high of $56.61.

Equitable announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 7.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 4th. Equitable’s payout ratio is presently -22.41%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Truist Financial Corp increased its position in Equitable by 180.7% during the 3rd quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 32,820 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,667,000 after buying an additional 21,127 shares in the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd boosted its holdings in Equitable by 26.5% in the third quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 241,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,616,000 after acquiring an additional 50,455 shares in the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Equitable in the third quarter worth $1,684,000. Korea Investment CORP grew its stake in shares of Equitable by 24.9% in the third quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 299,391 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,203,000 after acquiring an additional 59,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Algebris UK Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Equitable by 28.6% during the third quarter. Algebris UK Ltd. now owns 712,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,151,000 after acquiring an additional 158,488 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Equitable

Here are the key news stories impacting Equitable this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Raymond James upgraded EQH from “market perform” to “strong-buy” with a $58 price target (implying ~39% upside from current levels), which is a clear bullish catalyst for investors. Raymond James Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Management and counterpart Corebridge have discussed potential share buybacks ahead of the pending Corebridge–Equitable transaction; buyback talk typically supports the share price by reducing float and signaling confidence in valuation. Buybacks & Merger Discussion
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider sales disclosed (all executed under pre-arranged Rule 10b5‑1 plans): COO Jeffrey Hurd sold 14,358 shares (~$40.58 avg), Nick Lane sold 10,000 shares (~$40.44 avg), and CEO Mark Pearson sold 1,387 shares (~$40.03 avg). Because these were planned 10b5‑1 trades the market impact is muted, but such filings can still raise short-term selling pressure. Filing links: Hurd SEC Filing Lane SEC Filing Pearson SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Technical and fundamental headwinds: the 50‑day moving average (~$40.06) sits below the 200‑day (~$44.79) and key metrics show negative earnings (negative P/E) and high reported leverage; these factors can limit upside and contribute to continued selling pressure despite positive headlines.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on EQH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Equitable from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Equitable from $65.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $60.00 price target on Equitable in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Zacks Research cut Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $58.00 price objective on Equitable and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Equitable currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.91.

Equitable Company Profile

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.