Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 33,957 Shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) by 24.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 175,305 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 33,957 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Equitable were worth $8,269,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Equitable by 195.6% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 532 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Equitable by 33.2% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in shares of Equitable by 298.3% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,689 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 1,265 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Equitable by 31.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,707 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 82.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 817 shares during the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on EQH. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Equitable from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $47.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Equitable from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.75.

Equitable Price Performance

NYSE:EQH opened at $52.14 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $53.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $48.56. The firm has a market cap of $16.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.65 and a beta of 1.39. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $35.49 and a one year high of $56.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a current ratio of 0.07.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.08). Equitable had a return on equity of 85.70% and a net margin of 10.51%. Research analysts expect that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.33 EPS for the current year.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.13%.

Insider Activity at Equitable

In other Equitable news, insider Nick Lane sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.65, for a total value of $1,291,250.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 121,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,282,137.85. This trade represents a 17.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.16, for a total value of $1,534,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 753,206 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,534,018.96. This trade represents a 3.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 103,332 shares of company stock worth $5,364,610. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Equitable Profile

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.