Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Coverage Initiated at Barclays

Stock analysts at Barclays began coverage on shares of Equitable (NYSE:EQH) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set an “overweight” rating and a $59.00 price target on the stock. Barclays‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 45.54% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Equitable from $41.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Equitable from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. UBS Group downgraded Equitable from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $40.00 to $43.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Equitable from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Equitable from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.64.

Equitable Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE EQH opened at $40.54 on Wednesday. Equitable has a 1-year low of $24.65 and a 1-year high of $44.50. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $41.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.55 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.06, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.03. Equitable had a net margin of 7.87% and a return on equity of 87.49%. The business had revenue of $3.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.17 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 47.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Equitable will post 6.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In related news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 678,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,635,021. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Equitable news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 9,969 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.62, for a total value of $394,971.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 121,521 shares in the company, valued at $4,814,662.02. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.20, for a total value of $1,266,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 678,555 shares in the company, valued at $28,635,021. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 49,938 shares of company stock valued at $2,090,536. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equitable

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Equitable by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,012,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,265,815,000 after purchasing an additional 446,752 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Equitable by 60.9% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 100,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,819,000 after buying an additional 38,040 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in Equitable during the 4th quarter worth approximately $362,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 265.0% in the first quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 69,503 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,642,000 after acquiring an additional 50,460 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,892,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

About Equitable

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.