Levin Capital Strategies L.P. Takes $3.26 Million Position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH

Levin Capital Strategies L.P. acquired a new position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 64,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,257,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in Equitable by 180.7% in the third quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 32,820 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,667,000 after purchasing an additional 21,127 shares during the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its stake in shares of Equitable by 26.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 241,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,616,000 after acquiring an additional 50,455 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new position in shares of Equitable during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,684,000. Algebris UK Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Equitable by 28.6% in the third quarter. Algebris UK Ltd. now owns 712,460 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,151,000 after acquiring an additional 158,488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Associates Ltd. grew its holdings in Equitable by 53.9% in the second quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 17,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $971,000 after purchasing an additional 6,065 shares during the period. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on EQH. Zacks Research downgraded Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Raymond James Financial set a $60.00 price objective on Equitable in a research note on Monday, January 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Mizuho set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Equitable in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Equitable from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.42.

Equitable Trading Up 0.8%

NYSE EQH opened at $45.61 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $46.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.77. The company has a market capitalization of $13.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.12. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.39 and a 12 month high of $56.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42, a current ratio of 0.10 and a quick ratio of 0.13.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Equitable’s payout ratio is presently -22.41%.

Equitable declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In other news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.20, for a total transaction of $1,834,140.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 652,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,166,059. This represents a 5.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 $4,762,998.70. This represents a 23.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 157,280 shares of company stock valued at $7,455,677 over the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Equitable

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.