Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Price Target Raised to $61.00

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) had its price target boosted by Wells Fargo & Company from $53.00 to $61.00 in a report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Equitable from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Equitable in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.58.

Equitable Stock Performance

NYSE EQH opened at $55.77 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $50.69 and its 200-day moving average is $46.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07. The firm has a market cap of $17.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 1.39. Equitable has a 12-month low of $32.96 and a 12-month high of $56.00.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.08). Equitable had a return on equity of 85.70% and a net margin of 10.51%. Sell-side analysts predict that Equitable will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.13%.

Insider Activity

In other Equitable news, insider Nick Lane sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.84, for a total value of $1,146,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 141,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,492,273.36. This trade represents a 15.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 1,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.68, for a total transaction of $79,356.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 17,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $825,162.36. This trade represents a 8.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 131,698 shares of company stock valued at $6,534,234. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EQH. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Equitable in the 4th quarter worth $668,250,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Equitable by 59.9% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,817,020 shares of the company’s stock worth $415,899,000 after acquiring an additional 3,303,449 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Equitable by 700.3% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,563,172 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,126,000 after acquiring an additional 1,367,837 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Equitable by 608.1% in the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,468,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,289,000 after acquiring an additional 1,261,466 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 237.0% in the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,758,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,955,000 after purchasing an additional 1,236,799 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Equitable Company 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.