Morgan Stanley Raises Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Price Target to $41.00

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) had its price objective increased by Morgan Stanley from $39.00 to $41.00 in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on EQH. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Equitable from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and increased their price target for the stock from $35.00 to $36.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Equitable from $34.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Equitable from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Equitable has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $39.67.

Equitable Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Equitable stock opened at $35.65 on Monday. Equitable has a 12-month low of $21.89 and a 12-month high of $38.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.55 and a beta of 1.42. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.17.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.50 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Equitable will post 6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Equitable’s payout ratio is 26.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In other Equitable news, insider Nick Lane sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.02, for a total transaction of $680,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 144,132 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,903,370.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.38, for a total value of $1,942,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 619,625 shares in the company, valued at $20,063,457.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.02, for a total transaction of $680,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 144,132 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,903,370.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 241,907 shares of company stock valued at $8,338,649 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in Equitable by 107.1% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 812 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its position in Equitable by 143.1% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 591 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Equitable by 126.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 704 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Equitable during the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Equitable by 128.3% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,840 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares during the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.