Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) Short Interest Up 25.4% in March

Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) was the target of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,770,000 shares, an increase of 25.4% from the February 28th total of 4,600,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,960,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.9 days. Approximately 1.9% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Nick Lane sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.12, for a total value of $255,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 139,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,109,411.76. This trade represents a 3.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.16, for a total transaction of $1,534,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 753,206 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $38,534,018.96. This represents a 3.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 103,332 shares of company stock valued at $5,364,610. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Equitable

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Equitable by 195.6% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Equitable by 111.2% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 678 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Equitable by 33.2% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 799 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Bank Ltd. raised its position in shares of Equitable by 61.4% during the 4th quarter. Mizuho Bank Ltd. now owns 1,130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 430 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 154.3% in the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 841 shares during the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EQH has been the subject of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Equitable from $62.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $47.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Equitable from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on Equitable from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.75.

Equitable Stock Up 5.1 %

Shares of EQH opened at $54.97 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $53.05 and its 200 day moving average is $48.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07. Equitable has a 12-month low of $35.49 and a 12-month high of $56.00. The company has a market capitalization of $16.87 billion, a PE ratio of 14.39 and a beta of 1.39.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 85.70%. Research analysts expect that Equitable will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Equitable’s payout ratio is 25.13%.

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.