Jeffrey J. Hurd Sells 6,666 Shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) Stock

Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.31, for a total value of $315,368.46. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 98,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,677,776.25. This trade represents a 6.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Equitable Price Performance

Shares of Equitable stock opened at $44.36 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -40.70 and a beta of 1.38. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $46.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $31.76 and a 1-year high of $50.51.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53. Equitable had a positive return on equity of 76.47% and a negative net margin of 2.64%. The business had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.15 EPS. Equitable’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 6.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -88.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Equitable from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $54.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Equitable from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.10.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EQH. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 215.1% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,590 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 1,768 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in Equitable by 117.3% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 246,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,060,000 after purchasing an additional 132,922 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Equitable by 11.6% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 4,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $189,000 after buying an additional 479 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Equitable in the 2nd quarter valued at $391,000. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable in the 2nd quarter valued at $613,000. 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.