Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Should You Buy?

Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Thursday . 4,115,881 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 30% from the previous session’s volume of 3,160,620 shares.The stock last traded at $38.2930 and had previously closed at $38.19.

Equitable News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Equitable this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Merger announced: Equitable and Corebridge agreed to a $22 billion all‑stock merger to create a combined retirement, life, wealth and asset management company with roughly $1.5 trillion AUM; Equitable shareholders would own ~49% of the combined company. This deal is the primary bullish catalyst for premium valuation expectations. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods initiated coverage with an “outperform” and a $53 price target (about ~40% above current levels), which supports upside narrative tied to the merger. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Wide media coverage: Major outlets (Reuters, WSJ) are reporting the deal and valuation, increasing visibility and likely contributing to higher trading volume as investors digest terms. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder investigations: Monteverde & Associates announced an investigation into whether Equitable shareholders are being treated fairly in the transaction, adding legal overhang and potential deal uncertainty. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Additional law‑firm probes: Ademi LLP and Halper Sadeh LLC have opened separate investigations about whether the merger delivers a fair price and whether fiduciary duties were satisfied, increasing legal/transaction risk. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Rising short interest: Short interest jumped ~19% in March to ~8.0M shares (≈2.9% of float), which can add selling pressure and increase volatility if shorts build further or cover. No link

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on EQH. Weiss Ratings downgraded Equitable from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Barclays dropped their target price on Equitable from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Mizuho set a $65.00 target price on Equitable in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Equitable from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on Equitable in a research report on Thursday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $53.00 price target for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equitable currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.55.

Equitable Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $42.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13. The company has a market cap of $10.75 billion, a PE ratio of -7.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.12.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th were paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Equitable’s payout ratio is presently -22.41%.

Equitable announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 11th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 7.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In other Equitable news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.20, for a total transaction of $1,834,140.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 652,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,166,059. This represents a 5.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,790 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total transaction of $323,543.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 55,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,621,845.95. This represents a 10.98% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 76,490 shares of company stock valued at $3,587,184 over the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 92.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 882 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 424 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Equitable by 71.5% in the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,565,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,958,000 after purchasing an additional 1,486,286 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in shares of Equitable by 13.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 45,540 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,555,000 after purchasing an additional 5,348 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management lifted its holdings in Equitable by 64.0% during the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 938 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Equitable by 27.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 577,537 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,400,000 after purchasing an additional 125,828 shares in the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is currently 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.