Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) Shares Bought by AustralianSuper Pty Ltd

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its position in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 126.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 378,953 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 211,332 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd owned about 0.12% of Equitable worth $17,875,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EQH. Truist Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Equitable by 32.3% in the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 8,929 shares of the company's stock valued at $365,000 after buying an additional 2,180 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Equitable by 19.3% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 23,832 shares of the company's stock worth $974,000 after purchasing an additional 3,860 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Equitable by 43.7% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,998 shares of the company's stock worth $252,000 after buying an additional 1,823 shares during the period. Creative Planning lifted its stake in shares of Equitable by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 13,541 shares of the company's stock valued at $569,000 after purchasing an additional 476 shares during the period. Finally, Ellsworth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Equitable by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 35,790 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,504,000 after acquiring an additional 3,800 shares during the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Equitable Price Performance

NYSE EQH traded up $0.25 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $55.77. 2,218,180 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,880,312. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $46.10. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.96 and a 12-month high of $56.00. The company has a market capitalization of $17.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 EPS 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, analysts predict that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.33 EPS for the current year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Equitable's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on EQH shares. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Equitable from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Equitable from $53.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Equitable from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Equitable in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $56.58.

Insider Transactions at Equitable

In related news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total value of $369,163.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 104,298 shares in the company, valued at $5,776,023.24. This trade represents a 6.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 1,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.68, for a total value of $79,356.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 17,677 shares in the company, valued at $825,162.36. The trade was a 8.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 131,698 shares of company stock valued at $6,534,234. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Equitable Company Profile

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.