Norges Bank Invests $668.25 Million in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 14,166,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $668,250,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Equitable by 195.6% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 532 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Equitable by 33.2% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in shares of Equitable by 298.3% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,689 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 1,265 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 31.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,707 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Equitable by 82.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 817 shares during the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.65, for a total value of $1,549,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 629,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,536,349.35. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total value of $369,163.08. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 104,298 shares in the company, valued at $5,776,023.24. This trade represents a 6.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 103,332 shares of company stock worth $5,364,610 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Equitable Stock Performance

Equitable stock opened at $53.36 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 0.07 and a quick ratio of 0.12. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $35.49 and a 12 month high of $56.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $53.02 and its 200-day moving average is $48.26. The company has a market cap of $16.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.97 and a beta of 1.39.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 EPS 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.80%. Equitable’s payout ratio is currently 25.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EQH has been the topic of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $47.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Equitable from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Equitable from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Equitable from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.75.

Equitable 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.