EQT Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:EQT)

EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders purchased 75,664 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 311% compared to the average volume of 18,408 put options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EQT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on EQT from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Stephens cut their target price on shares of EQT from $78.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of EQT from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wolfe Research lifted their price target on shares of EQT from $64.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of EQT from $76.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at EQT

In other news, Director Vicky A. Bailey sold 4,116 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.80, for a total transaction of $246,136.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sarah Fenton sold 4,876 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.49, for a total transaction of $314,453.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 52,953 shares in the company, valued at $3,414,938.97. This represents a 8.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 107,706 shares of company stock worth $5,917,367. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in EQT by 213.3% during the 3rd quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 1,029,234 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $56,021,000 after buying an additional 700,732 shares in the last quarter. Sound Shore Management Inc CT lifted its holdings in shares of EQT by 31.8% in the third quarter. Sound Shore Management Inc CT now owns 1,526,821 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $83,105,000 after buying an additional 368,748 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in EQT by 228.5% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 517,651 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $27,746,000 after acquiring an additional 360,049 shares in the last quarter. KTF Investments LLC bought a new stake in EQT in the 4th quarter valued at $8,885,000. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its stake in EQT by 495.2% in the 2nd quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 128,060 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $7,468,000 after purchasing an additional 106,545 shares in the last quarter. 90.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

EQT Stock Performance

NYSE EQT traded up $0.55 on Wednesday, reaching $53.24. 2,080,676 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,822,621. EQT has a one year low of $48.47 and a one year high of $68.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.30 billion, a PE ratio of 10.12 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $57.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $57.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

EQT (NYSE:EQT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.14 billion. EQT had a net margin of 31.94% and a return on equity of 9.74%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.18 earnings per share. Analysts expect that EQT will post 4.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

EQT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th were given a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 6th. EQT’s payout ratio is presently 12.52%.

EQT Company Profile

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.