Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Price Target Raised to $68.00

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) had its price target lifted by UBS Group from $63.00 to $68.00 in a report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on EQH. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Equitable from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Equitable from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Zacks Research raised shares of Equitable from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Equitable from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Equitable from $51.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.92.

Equitable Stock Up 0.6%

EQH opened at $46.98 on Wednesday. Equitable has a 1-year low of $35.19 and a 1-year high of $55.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a 50 day moving average of $43.29 and a 200-day moving average of $42.96.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.02. Equitable had a negative net margin of 7.26% and a positive return on equity of 232.29%. The business had revenue of $4.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.95 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.35 earnings per share. Equitable’s quarterly revenue was down 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Equitable will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Equitable Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is an increase from Equitable’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio is presently -42.25%.

Insider Transactions at Equitable

In other news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 14,358 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.11, for a total value of $647,689.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 74,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,371,882.28. This represents a 16.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 2,470 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.08, for a total transaction of $101,467.60. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 27,931 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,147,405.48. The trade was a 8.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 154,248 shares of company stock worth $6,608,358. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Equitable in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equitable by 64.1% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 888 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 347 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 124.7% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 728 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 404 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Equitable in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Essential Partners LLC boosted its stake in Equitable by 245.2% in the 1st quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 1,084 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 770 shares in the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Equitable

Here are the key news stories impacting Equitable this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS Group raised its price target on Equitable Holdings (EQH) to $68.00, signaling meaningful upside confidence. Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Price Target Raised to $68.00 at UBS Group
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo increased its target to $60.00 from $57.00 and kept an overweight rating, reinforcing a constructive outlook for EQH. Equitable had its price target raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $57.00 to $60.00
• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho raised its target to $62.00 from $61.00 and maintained an outperform rating, adding to the bullish analyst momentum. Equitable had its price target raised by Mizuho from $61.00 to $62.00
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays kept a Buy rating on Equitable Holdings, which supports investor sentiment even without a target change. Barclays Keeps Their Buy Rating on Equitable Holdings (EQH)
• Neutral Sentiment: Equitable’s institutional holdings update is informational and does not by itself signal a clear near-term catalyst for the stock. Equitable Holdings, Inc. Common Stock (EQH) Institutional Holdings
• Negative Sentiment: Wolfe Research downgraded Equitable Holdings to Peer Perform from outperform, which tempers the otherwise positive analyst tone. Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Downgraded to Peer Perform Rating 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.