Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. Acquires 32,921 Shares of EQT Corporation $EQT

Key Points

• Cullen Frost Bankers increased its EQT position by 21.5% in the fourth quarter, buying 32,921 more shares and bringing its total holdings to 186,352 shares worth about $9.99 million.
• EQT’s latest earnings beat expectations, with quarterly EPS of $2.33 versus the $2.01 consensus, while revenue came in line at $3.14 billion.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.165 per share, or $0.66 annually, yielding about 1.1% based on the current payout.

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. grew its holdings in EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT - Free Report) by 21.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 186,352 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after purchasing an additional 32,921 shares during the quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.'s holdings in EQT were worth $9,988,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of EQT. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new position in shares of EQT in the 1st quarter valued at about $256,000. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its stake in shares of EQT by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 21,637 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,156,000 after purchasing an additional 1,789 shares during the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its stake in shares of EQT by 495.2% in the 2nd quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 128,060 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $7,468,000 after purchasing an additional 106,545 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of EQT by 39.4% in the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 30,617 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,786,000 after purchasing an additional 8,658 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allstate Corp bought a new position in shares of EQT in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,234,000. Institutional investors own 90.81% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on EQT shares. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of EQT from $75.00 to $74.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Siebert Williams Shank lifted their price objective on shares of EQT from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of EQT from $76.00 to $70.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of EQT from $67.00 to $63.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of EQT from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at EQT

In other news, insider Lesley Evancho sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.69, for a total value of $1,213,800.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 184,607 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,203,798.83. The trade was a 9.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sarah Fenton sold 4,876 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.49, for a total transaction of $314,453.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 52,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,414,938.97. This represents a 8.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 65,274 shares of company stock worth $3,989,120. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

EQT Stock Performance

Shares of EQT stock opened at $57.86 on Thursday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $60.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $57.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The firm has a market cap of $36.19 billion, a PE ratio of 10.98 and a beta of 0.59. EQT Corporation has a 12 month low of $48.47 and a 12 month high of $68.24.

EQT (NYSE:EQT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.14 billion. EQT had a net margin of 31.94% and a return on equity of 9.74%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.18 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that EQT Corporation will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

EQT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th will be given a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 6th. EQT's payout ratio is currently 12.52%.

EQT Company Profile

EQT Corporation NYSE: EQT is a U.S.-based energy company focused on the exploration, development and production of natural gas. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the company concentrates its upstream operations in the Appalachian Basin, producing from major shale formations including the Marcellus and Utica. EQT's primary product is natural gas, with production activities supported by associated liquids and conventional gas assets where applicable.

In addition to drilling and well development, EQT operates and coordinates the infrastructure and commercial activities necessary to bring gas to market.

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