Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Acquires 10,164 Shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 722,019 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 10,164 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of Equitable worth $34,058,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of EQH. State Street Corp increased its stake in Equitable by 2.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,976,870 shares of the company's stock valued at $545,418,000 after purchasing an additional 338,205 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Equitable by 3.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,513,571 shares of the company's stock worth $231,735,000 after buying an additional 161,376 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Equitable by 2.5% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,220,356 shares of the company's stock worth $93,322,000 after buying an additional 54,380 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Equitable by 3.3% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,165,115 shares of the company's stock worth $91,000,000 after buying an additional 68,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 7.5% in the third 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 in the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Nick Lane sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.84, for a total transaction 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 trade represents a 15.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 1,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.68, for a total transaction of $79,356.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 17,677 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $825,162.36. This trade represents a 8.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 125,032 shares of company stock worth $6,165,071. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EQH has been the topic of several recent research reports. 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 reduced their price target 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Equitable from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Equitable in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. 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, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $55.92.

Equitable Price Performance

Equitable stock traded up $1.62 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $55.36. 4,530,037 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,889,528. The firm has a market cap of $17.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.49 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. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $50.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $45.81. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $32.96 and a 1-year high of $55.78.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 forecast that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.73%. Equitable's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.13%.

Equitable 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.