Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 104,483 Shares of EQT Co. (NYSE:EQT)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its stake in EQT Co. (NYSE:EQT) by 8.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,116,073 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 104,483 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in EQT were worth $51,462,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. HM Payson & Co. bought a new position in EQT during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of EQT in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Quarry LP boosted its stake in EQT by 184.7% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 891 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 578 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new position in EQT during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Financial Avengers Inc. increased its stake in EQT by 100.8% in the third quarter. Financial Avengers Inc. now owns 1,004 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. 90.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EQT Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EQT opened at $53.55 on Tuesday. EQT Co. has a fifty-two week low of $30.02 and a fifty-two week high of $54.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.74, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The business has a 50-day moving average of $47.96 and a 200-day moving average of $40.45.

EQT Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.1575 per share. This represents a $0.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. EQT’s dividend payout ratio is currently 75.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on EQT. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of EQT from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $73.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Bank of America initiated coverage on EQT in a report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on EQT from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on EQT from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $49.00 target price on shares of EQT in a report on Monday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $49.94.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Thomas F. Karam sold 30,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.83, for a total value of $1,351,803.82. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 201,608 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,038,086.64. This trade represents a 13.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About EQT

EQT Corporation operates as a natural gas production company in the United States. The company sells natural gas and natural gas liquids to marketers, utilities, and industrial customers through pipelines located in the Appalachian Basin. It also offers marketing services and contractual pipeline capacity management services.