Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Given New $57.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Key Points

• JPMorgan cut its price target on Equitable to $57 (from $58) but kept an "overweight" rating, implying roughly a 37% upside from the stock's current ~$41.50 level.
• The analyst consensus remains a Moderate Buy with an average target of $56.82 (2 Strong Buy, 9 Buy, 2 Sell from covering analysts).
• Equitable's board approved a $1.0 billion share repurchase program (up to ~7.7% of outstanding shares), while insiders have sold about 128,116 shares (~$5.2M) over the last quarter.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report) had its target price decreased by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $58.00 to $57.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective suggests a potential upside of 37.43% from the company's current price.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on EQH. Barclays decreased their price objective on Equitable from $57.00 to $49.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered Equitable from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Evercore set a $63.00 price target on Equitable and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Equitable from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $58.00 price target on Equitable and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equitable has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $56.82.

Equitable Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:EQH traded down $0.36 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $41.48. 3,468,729 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,590,869. Equitable has a 1-year low of $35.19 and a 1-year high of $56.61. The company has a market capitalization of $11.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.11. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $39.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13.

Equitable declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 11th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 7.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Equitable news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 14,358 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.04, for a total value of $574,894.32. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 89,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,579,696.12. The trade was a 13.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.44, for a total value of $404,400.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 124,218 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,023,375.92. The trade was a 7.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 128,116 shares of company stock valued at $5,205,010. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EQH. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the third quarter worth $26,000. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Equitable by 64.1% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 888 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 404 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the third quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Equitable by 92.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 882 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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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