EQT (NYSE:EQT) Rating Increased to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of EQT (NYSE:EQT) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

EQT has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of EQT from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Weiss Ratings cut EQT from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Truist Financial cut their price target on EQT from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on EQT from $65.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Stephens lifted their price objective on EQT from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, EQT presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.10.

EQT Stock Down 0.4%

NYSE:EQT opened at $54.56 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $52.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.40. The company has a market capitalization of $34.13 billion, a PE ratio of 12.66 and a beta of 0.58. EQT has a 1-year low of $47.94 and a 1-year high of $68.24.

EQT (NYSE:EQT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.02). EQT had a net margin of 28.44% and a return on equity of 9.31%. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.76 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 29.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that EQT will post 3.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

EQT Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 5th will be issued a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 5th. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. EQT’s payout ratio is 15.31%.

Insider Activity at EQT

In other news, CEO Toby Z. Rice sold 175,328 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.03, for a total transaction of $9,648,299.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,157,865 shares in the company, valued at $118,747,310.95. This represents a 7.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 274,042 shares of company stock worth $15,005,076 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EQT

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EQT. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of EQT in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of EQT in the second quarter worth $26,000. Wedbush Fund Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of EQT by 251.8% during the second quarter. Wedbush Fund Advisers LLC now owns 577 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 413 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of EQT during the second quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Gables Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of EQT during the second quarter valued at $37,000. 90.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

EQT Company Profile

EQT Corporation (NYSE: EQT) is a U.S.-based energy company focused on the exploration, development and production of natural gas. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the company concentrates its upstream operations in the Appalachian Basin, producing from major shale formations including the Marcellus and Utica. EQT’s primary product is natural gas, with production activities supported by associated liquids and conventional gas assets where applicable.

In addition to drilling and well development, EQT operates and coordinates the infrastructure and commercial activities necessary to bring gas to market.