Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Issues Earnings Results

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The company reported $1.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.75 by ($0.02), FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. Equitable had a positive return on equity of 107.71% and a negative net margin of 5.80%.

Equitable Price Performance

Shares of Equitable stock traded up $0.17 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $44.85. 5,025,518 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,928,806. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.87, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13. Equitable has a 1-year low of $41.39 and a 1-year high of $56.61. The company has a market cap of $12.85 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.25, a PEG ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.12. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $47.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.29.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 24th were paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 24th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -39.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on EQH shares. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Equitable in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Equitable from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Equitable from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $64.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Barclays reduced their price target on Equitable from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Equitable from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.46.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,790 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total transaction of $323,543.50. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 55,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,621,845.95. The trade was a 10.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total transaction of $1,429,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 99,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,762,998.70. This represents a 23.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 203,770 shares of company stock valued at $9,462,206. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Equitable

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EQH. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Equitable by 1,350.0% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,914 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 1,782 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new position in Equitable in the third quarter valued at about $553,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in shares of Equitable by 11.7% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 2,634 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Equitable by 22.0% during the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $343,000 after purchasing an additional 1,219 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the third quarter worth about $7,671,000. Institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

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.