Capital International Investors Grows Stock Holdings in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

Capital International Investors lifted its position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) by 24.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,601,643 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 508,030 shares during the period. Capital International Investors’ holdings in Equitable were worth $122,720,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in Equitable by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 19,032,270 shares of the company’s stock worth $897,752,000 after purchasing an additional 79,999 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in Equitable by 31.6% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,275,039 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,314,000 after buying an additional 546,937 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP increased its position in Equitable by 86.0% during the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 24,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,177,000 after buying an additional 11,540 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC raised its stake in Equitable by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 19,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $916,000 after buying an additional 854 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Equitable by 24.0% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 622,055 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,342,000 after acquiring an additional 120,557 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Equitable from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $49.00 to $77.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Equitable from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Equitable from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Equitable from $62.00 to $59.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.91.

Insider Activity at Equitable

In other news, insider Nick Lane sold 5,000 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.12, for a total value of $255,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 139,073 shares in the company, valued at $7,109,411.76. This trade represents a 3.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total transaction of $369,163.08. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 104,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,776,023.24. This trade represents a 6.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 83,332 shares of company stock worth $4,141,315 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Equitable Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:EQH opened at $46.88 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $36.46 and a 12-month high of $56.00. The business has a 50 day moving average of $51.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $49.11. The company has a market capitalization of $14.38 billion, a PE ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 1.23.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.08). Equitable had a net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 85.70%. As a group, analysts forecast that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.33 EPS for the current year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.13%.

Equitable 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.