Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Stock Price

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) had its price objective reduced by Morgan Stanley from $59.00 to $54.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 38.43% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on EQH. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Equitable in a report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Equitable from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Equitable from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. 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 given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.64.

Equitable Price Performance

Shares of EQH stock traded down $1.48 on Tuesday, reaching $39.01. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,156,008 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,125,192. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42. Equitable has a 12-month low of $37.51 and a 12-month high of $56.61. The company has a market capitalization of $10.94 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.09, a PEG ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.12. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $45.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $48.14.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 652,945 shares in the company, valued at $30,166,059. This represents a 5.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,790 shares of the firm’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 value of $323,543.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 55,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,621,845.95. The trade was a 10.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 157,280 shares of company stock worth $7,455,677. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Equitable during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 592.6% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 561 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Equitable during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in shares of Equitable in the third quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Equitable by 124.7% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the period. 92.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.