KBC Group NV Reduces Holdings in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

KBC Group NV lowered its position in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 18.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,339 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,318 shares during the period. KBC Group NV's holdings in Equitable were worth $1,903,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. MQS Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable in the third quarter valued at about $587,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 20.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 908,653 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,191,000 after purchasing an additional 153,457 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Equitable by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,117,568 shares of the company's stock worth $89,001,000 after buying an additional 148,180 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Equitable in the fourth quarter worth $295,000. Finally, Qsemble Capital Management LP increased its holdings in Equitable by 902.4% during the third quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP now owns 78,456 shares of the company's stock worth $3,298,000 after buying an additional 70,629 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.70% of the company's stock.

Equitable Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EQH traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $53.45. 4,248,491 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,816,143. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63. The business's fifty day moving average price is $49.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $45.26. The company has a market cap of $16.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -49.03 and a beta of 1.39. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.54 and a 12-month high of $54.82.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.08). Equitable had a positive return on equity of 76.47% and a negative net margin of 2.64%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 26th. Equitable's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -88.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on EQH. Barclays upped their price target on Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Equitable from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $47.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Equitable from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Equitable from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $54.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equitable has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $53.67.

Insider Transactions at Equitable

In other news, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 1,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.68, for a total transaction of $79,356.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 17,677 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $825,162.36. This trade represents a 8.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 25,000 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 141,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,492,273.36. This represents a 15.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 161,698 shares of company stock worth $7,904,806. 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.