Barclays Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Stock Price

Key Points

• Barclays cut its price target for Equitable from $57.00 to $49.00 while keeping an "overweight" rating, with the new target implying roughly a 25% upside from the prior close.
• The board authorized a $1.0 billion stock buyback (up to about 7.7% of shares), a sign management believes the shares may be undervalued.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed—several firms have trimmed targets or downgraded EQH, but MarketBeat shows a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $58.82; insiders sold ~76,490 shares in the past 90 days.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report) had its target price reduced by analysts at Barclays from $57.00 to $49.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. Barclays's target price suggests a potential upside of 25.00% from the company's previous close.

Several other research firms also recently commented on EQH. Raymond James Financial set a $60.00 price target on shares of Equitable in a research note on Monday, January 5th. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Equitable in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Equitable from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $57.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Equitable from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $58.82.

Equitable Trading Up 3.8%

NYSE EQH traded up $1.45 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $39.20. The stock had a trading volume of 1,052,494 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,517,447. The company has a market capitalization of $10.99 billion, a PE ratio of -8.14, a PEG ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $40.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.34. Equitable has a twelve month low of $35.19 and a twelve month high of $56.61.

Equitable announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 11th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 7.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.20, for a total value of $1,834,140.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 652,945 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,166,059. This represents a 5.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total transaction of $1,429,500.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 99,958 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,762,998.70. This trade represents a 23.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 76,490 shares of company stock valued at $3,587,184. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 124.7% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 728 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable during the third quarter worth $36,000. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable during the third quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable during the third quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.70% of the company's stock.

About Equitable

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.

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