Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Sets New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $47.90 and last traded at $47.65, with a volume of 16727 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.49.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on EQH shares. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $44.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Equitable from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Equitable from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Equitable from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Equitable from $41.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equitable has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.70.

Equitable Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.06, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $15.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -44.33 and a beta of 1.40. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $43.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.37.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53. The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.78 billion. Equitable had a negative net margin of 2.64% and a positive return on equity of 85.96%. The firm’s revenue was down 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.15 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 6.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 678,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,635,021. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 3,500 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.42, for a total transaction of $148,470.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 19,321 shares in the company, valued at $819,596.82. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 678,555 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,635,021. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 93,500 shares of company stock valued at $3,969,870. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EQH. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Equitable by 61.5% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 646 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the first quarter valued at about $28,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the first quarter valued at about $45,000. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Equitable in the third quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Equitable by 86.3% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Equitable

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.