Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Equitable (NYSE:EQH – Free Report) from an outperform rating to a peer perform rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat reports.
Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Equitable from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Equitable from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Equitable in a report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Equitable from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.36.
Get Our Latest Analysis on Equitable
Equitable Trading Up 2.1%
Equitable (NYSE:EQH – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.02. Equitable had a positive return on equity of 232.29% and a negative net margin of 7.26%.The company had revenue of $4.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.95 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.35 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Equitable will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current year.
Equitable Increases Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This is a boost from Equitable’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -42.25%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other Equitable news, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 7,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.48, for a total value of $310,104.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 15,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $658,694.88. The trade was a 32.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 14,358 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.44, for a total transaction of $609,353.52. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 79,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,369,863.32. The trade was a 15.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 154,248 shares of company stock valued at $6,608,358 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable
Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC acquired a new stake in Equitable during the second quarter worth approximately $424,000. Community Trust & Investment Co. raised its holdings in Equitable by 22.8% in the 2nd quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co. now owns 476,885 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,926,000 after acquiring an additional 88,484 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Equitable by 30.8% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 11,919 shares of the company’s stock valued at $523,000 after acquiring an additional 2,805 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 557.4% during the 2nd quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,545 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 1,310 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 30.2% during the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,282 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the period. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Equitable News Summary
Here are the key news stories impacting Equitable this week:
- Positive Sentiment: UBS Group raised its price target on Equitable Holdings and reaffirmed a buy rating, reinforcing optimism about further upside. Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Price Target Raised to $68.00 at UBS Group
- Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo increased its target to $60 and kept an overweight rating, adding to the bullish analyst momentum. Equitable price target raised by Wells Fargo
- Positive Sentiment: Mizuho lifted its target to $62 and maintained an outperform rating, suggesting the shares still have meaningful room to run. Equitable price target raised by Mizuho
- Positive Sentiment: Barclays reiterated its buy rating on Equitable Holdings, supporting the view that sentiment remains favorable among major analysts. Barclays Keeps Their Buy Rating on Equitable Holdings (EQH)
- Neutral Sentiment: New institutional holdings information was posted, which may attract investor attention but does not by itself indicate a major business change. Equitable Holdings, Inc. Common Stock (EQH) Institutional Holdings
- Negative Sentiment: Wolfe Research downgraded Equitable from outperform to peer perform, which slightly tempers the otherwise bullish analyst outlook. Equitable downgraded by Wolfe Research
About Equitable
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.
Further Reading
- Five stocks we like better than Equitable
- PriceSmart Stock Eyes $220 as Chile Expansion Fuels Growth
- Dollar Tree’s Turnaround Is Starting to Take Root
- Why Levi’s Digital Strategy Is Paying Off in a Big Way
- Constellation Brands: Beer Growth and Buybacks Mask Stock’s Slump
Receive News & Ratings for Equitable Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Equitable and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
