Equitable Holdings, Inc. Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.24 (NYSE:EQH)

Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 13th,RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a dividend of 0.24 per share on Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th.

Equitable has raised its dividend by an average of 9.8% annually over the last three years. Equitable has a payout ratio of 11.5% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Equitable to earn $8.38 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.96 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 11.5%.

Equitable Trading Up 3.0 %

Equitable stock traded up $1.62 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $55.36. 4,530,037 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,889,528. The company has a current ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07. The firm has a market cap of $17.35 billion, a PE ratio of 14.49 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.82. Equitable has a 12-month low of $32.96 and a 12-month high of $55.78.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (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%. Research analysts expect that Equitable will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on EQH. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Equitable from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Equitable in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Equitable has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $55.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Nick Lane sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.84, for a total transaction of $1,146,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 141,629 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,492,273.36. The trade was a 15.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.31, for a total value of $315,368.46. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 98,875 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,677,776.25. The trade was a 6.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 125,032 shares of company stock worth $6,165,071. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.