Empowered Funds LLC Takes Position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 8,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $417,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of EQH. MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in Equitable in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $587,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Equitable by 20.3% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 908,653 shares of the company's stock worth $38,191,000 after purchasing an additional 153,457 shares in the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the 4th quarter valued at $295,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Equitable by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,117,568 shares of the company's stock valued at $89,001,000 after purchasing an additional 148,180 shares during the period. Finally, Vest Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Equitable by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 752,091 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,476,000 after buying an additional 78,725 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.70% of the company's stock.

Equitable Trading Down 4.7 %

EQH stock traded down $2.53 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $51.44. 2,632,152 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,890,468. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.46 and a beta of 1.39. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $32.96 and a 52-week high of $56.00. The business has a 50 day moving average of $50.91 and a 200-day moving average of $46.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a current ratio of 0.07.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.08). Equitable had a net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 85.70%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. Equitable's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EQH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Equitable from $53.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Equitable from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Equitable in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on Equitable from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $56.58.

Insider Activity at Equitable

In other news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.31, for a total transaction of $1,419,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 639,939 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,275,514.09. This represents a 4.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.84, for a total value of $1,146,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 141,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,492,273.36. The trade was a 15.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 131,698 shares of company stock worth $6,534,234. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

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.