Insider Selling: Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Director Sells $74,985.90 in Stock

Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) Director Bertram Scott sold 1,466 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.15, for a total transaction of $74,985.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 26,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,353,684.75. The trade was a 5.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Equitable Stock Performance

Shares of Equitable stock opened at $51.72 on Thursday. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $35.19 and a one year high of $55.24. The company has a market cap of $14.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.63, a PEG ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.09. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $46.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.75, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.15.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.05. Equitable had a positive return on equity of 511.35% and a negative net margin of 8.72%.The business had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 29.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.13 EPS for the current year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -36.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EQH has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered Equitable from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Equitable from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Equitable from $62.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wolfe Research cut shares of Equitable from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Equitable from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued 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, Equitable presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.17.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equitable

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Equitable during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in Equitable by 64.1% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 888 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 347 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable in the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 124.7% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Equitable in the third quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Equitable News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Equitable this week:

• Positive Sentiment: KBW reaffirmed its Buy/Outperform view and raised its price target to $67 from $62. The new target implies meaningful upside from recent trading levels and reinforces the bullish analyst outlook for EQH. KBW Reaffirms Buy Rating on Equitable Holdings
• Positive Sentiment: Merger synergies and capital returns continue to support the investment case. Analysts expect the planned Corebridge Financial combination to generate approximately $550 million in cost synergies and about 10% EPS accretion by 2027. Expected 2026 cash generation of roughly $1.8 billion and buybacks that could reduce the share count by approximately 8% are additional potential catalysts. Equitable Holdings Buybacks and Credit Resilience
• Positive Sentiment: Equitable’s latest earnings exceeded expectations. Second-quarter EPS was $1.70 versus the $1.65 consensus estimate, improving from $1.10 a year earlier. The company also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are assessing second-quarter commentary on merger momentum, organic growth and strategic divestitures. Further details from the earnings call may influence expectations for future growth and execution. EQH Q2 Deep Dive
• Negative Sentiment: Several insiders have recently sold EQH shares. Director Craig Mackay sold 2,200 shares for approximately $113,000, following sales by other directors and Chief Accounting Officer William Eckert. Reports cite 34 insider sales and no purchases over the past six months, which could temper investor confidence. Equitable Insider Selling
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue remains a key concern. Quarterly revenue declined 29.8% year over year to $1.66 billion, well below the $3.84 billion analyst estimate, limiting the impact of the EPS beat.

Equitable Company Profile

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.