Insider Selling: Equitable (NYSE:EQH) CAO Sells $50,077.36 in Stock

Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 947 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.88, for a total transaction of $50,077.36. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,419 shares in the company, valued at approximately $445,196.72. This represents a 10.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

William James Iv Eckert also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, June 10th, William James Iv Eckert sold 6,200 shares of Equitable stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.83, for a total transaction of $259,346.00.
• On Friday, May 15th, William James Iv Eckert sold 7,300 shares of Equitable stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.48, for a total transaction of $310,104.00.

Equitable Stock Performance

NYSE EQH opened at $51.72 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $46.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.17. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $35.19 and a 12-month high of $55.24. The firm has a market cap of $14.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.63, a PEG ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.75.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.05. Equitable had a positive return on equity of 511.35% and a negative net margin of 8.72%.The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.10 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 29.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.13 EPS for the current year.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio is -36.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on EQH shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Equitable from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Mizuho set a $68.00 price target on shares of Equitable in a report on Thursday, August 6th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Equitable from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Equitable from $62.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Equitable from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.17.

Key Stories Impacting Equitable

Here are the key news stories impacting Equitable this week:

• Positive Sentiment: KBW reaffirmed its Buy/Outperform view and raised its price target to $67 from $62. The new target implies meaningful upside from recent trading levels and reinforces the bullish analyst outlook for EQH. KBW Reaffirms Buy Rating on Equitable Holdings
• Positive Sentiment: Merger synergies and capital returns continue to support the investment case. Analysts expect the planned Corebridge Financial combination to generate approximately $550 million in cost synergies and about 10% EPS accretion by 2027. Expected 2026 cash generation of roughly $1.8 billion and buybacks that could reduce the share count by approximately 8% are additional potential catalysts. Equitable Holdings Buybacks and Credit Resilience
• Positive Sentiment: Equitable’s latest earnings exceeded expectations. Second-quarter EPS was $1.70 versus the $1.65 consensus estimate, improving from $1.10 a year earlier. The company also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are assessing second-quarter commentary on merger momentum, organic growth and strategic divestitures. Further details from the earnings call may influence expectations for future growth and execution. EQH Q2 Deep Dive
• Negative Sentiment: Several insiders have recently sold EQH shares. Director Craig Mackay sold 2,200 shares for approximately $113,000, following sales by other directors and Chief Accounting Officer William Eckert. Reports cite 34 insider sales and no purchases over the past six months, which could temper investor confidence. Equitable Insider Selling
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue remains a key concern. Quarterly revenue declined 29.8% year over year to $1.66 billion, well below the $3.84 billion analyst estimate, limiting the impact of the EPS beat.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equitable

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EQH. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in Equitable by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $130,000 after buying an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in Equitable by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its holdings in shares of Equitable by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 2,634 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG grew its holdings in shares of Equitable by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 19,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $708,000 after acquiring an additional 290 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional raised its position in shares of Equitable by 30.2% in the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,282 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Equitable Company Profile

Equitable Holdings, Inc (NYSE: EQH) is a leading provider of life insurance, annuities and retirement plan services in the United States. Through its insurance subsidiary, AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company, the firm offers a broad range of permanent and term life insurance products designed to help individuals and families manage risk and build wealth. In addition, Equitable provides fixed, variable and indexed annuity solutions to support income planning in retirement, as well as a suite of group retirement and pension plan services for employers and plan sponsors.

The company also maintains an asset management arm that delivers investment strategies across equities, fixed income and alternative asset classes for both retail and institutional clients.