Empirical Finance LLC Reduces Position in EQT Co. (NYSE:EQT)

Empirical Finance LLC trimmed its holdings in EQT Co. (NYSE:EQT) by 58.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,992 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 11,448 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in EQT were worth $369,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HM Payson & Co. bought a new stake in shares of EQT during the third quarter worth $25,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of EQT in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Quarry LP increased its stake in EQT by 184.7% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 891 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 578 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new stake in EQT in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Financial Avengers Inc. grew its stake in EQT by 100.8% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Avengers Inc. now owns 1,004 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.81% of the company’s stock.

EQT Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EQT opened at $53.87 on Wednesday. EQT Co. has a fifty-two week low of $30.02 and a fifty-two week high of $54.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $32.15 billion, a PE ratio of 64.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $40.59.

EQT Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.1575 per share. This represents a $0.63 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. EQT’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EQT has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of EQT to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Bank of America started coverage on EQT in a report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on EQT from $44.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Stephens lifted their price objective on EQT from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on EQT from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.94.

Insider Buying and Selling at EQT

In related news, Director Thomas F. Karam sold 30,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.83, for a total value of $1,351,803.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 201,608 shares in the company, valued at $9,038,086.64. This trade represents a 13.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

EQT Company Profile

EQT Corporation operates as a natural gas production company in the United States. The company sells natural gas and natural gas liquids to marketers, utilities, and industrial customers through pipelines located in the Appalachian Basin. It also offers marketing services and contractual pipeline capacity management services.