Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Increases Stock Position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 722,019 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,164 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Equitable were worth $34,058,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of EQH. MQS Management LLC purchased a new position in Equitable during the 3rd quarter valued at about $587,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake 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 buying an additional 153,457 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Equitable during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $295,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Equitable by 7.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,117,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,001,000 after acquiring an additional 148,180 shares during the period. Finally, Qsemble Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Equitable by 902.4% in the third quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP now owns 78,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,298,000 after acquiring an additional 70,629 shares in the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Equitable Price Performance

EQH opened at $53.77 on Wednesday. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $32.72 and a 1 year high of $54.82. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $49.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $45.59. The firm has a market cap of $16.85 billion, a PE ratio of 14.08 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 0.07 and a quick ratio of 0.12.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.08). Equitable had a return on equity of 85.70% and a net margin of 10.51%. Sell-side analysts predict that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio is 25.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Equitable in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Equitable from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Equitable from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised 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 report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays lifted 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In other Equitable news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.43, for a total value of $1,422,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 648,555 shares in the company, valued at $30,760,963.65. This represents a 4.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 25,000 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.84, for a total value of $1,146,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly 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 three months, insiders have sold 155,032 shares of company stock worth $7,587,971. 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.