Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Acquires 35,159 Shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 22.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 188,515 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 35,159 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.06% of Equitable worth $8,892,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the 4th quarter worth about $668,250,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Equitable by 59.9% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,817,020 shares of the company's stock worth $415,899,000 after acquiring an additional 3,303,449 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Equitable by 700.3% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,563,172 shares of the company's stock worth $74,126,000 after buying an additional 1,367,837 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Equitable by 608.1% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,468,912 shares of the company's stock worth $69,289,000 after buying an additional 1,261,466 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi lifted its holdings in Equitable by 56.3% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,659,691 shares of the company's stock worth $130,351,000 after buying an additional 957,828 shares during the period. 92.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Equitable Stock Performance

Shares of EQH traded up $0.84 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $49.73. 349,055 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,625,488. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a current ratio of 0.07. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $50.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $49.17. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $36.46 and a 1 year high of $56.00. The stock has a market cap of $15.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.03 and a beta of 1.23.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.93%. Equitable's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In other Equitable news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total value of $369,163.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 104,298 shares in the company, valued at $5,776,023.24. This represents a 6.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.16, for a total transaction of $1,534,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 753,206 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $38,534,018.96. The trade was a 3.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 83,332 shares of company stock valued at $4,141,315. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EQH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised 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 note on Friday, January 10th. Barclays increased 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Equitable from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Equitable from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Equitable from $62.00 to $59.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $60.91.

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.