Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC Buys 6,450 Shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH

Key Points

• Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Equitable Holdings by 31.9%, purchasing an additional 6,450 shares, bringing their total to 26,653 shares, valued at approximately $1.5 million.
• Several institutional investors are actively trading Equitable, with notable new positions, suggesting strong institutional interest as 92.70% of shares are owned by such investors.
• Analyst ratings for Equitable have varied, with price targets being raised by firms like JPMorgan Chase and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, indicating positive market sentiment and a consensus price target of $64.55.

Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 31.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,653 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,450 shares during the period. Equitable comprises approximately 0.7% of Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Equitable were worth $1,495,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Equitable in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Equitable during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Equitable during the first quarter worth $33,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Equitable during the first quarter worth $80,000. 92.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EQH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Equitable from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Equitable from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Equitable from $66.00 to $63.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Equitable from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Equitable to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $64.55.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,551 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.22, for a total value of $2,144,455.22. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 690,678 shares of the company's stock, valued at $37,448,561.16. This represents a 5.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robin M. Raju sold 36,888 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total transaction of $1,991,952.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 140,258 shares in the company, valued at $7,573,932. This represents a 20.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 192,468 shares of company stock valued at $10,250,470. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Equitable Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE EQH opened at $51.15 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $52.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $52.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.25 and a beta of 1.10. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $41.39 and a 12-month high of $56.61.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 5th were given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 5th. Equitable's dividend payout ratio is 87.10%.

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.

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