EJF Capital LLC Has $1.95 Million Stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH

Key Points

• EJF Capital LLC boosted its stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. by 22.6% after acquiring an additional 6,885 shares in the first quarter, bringing its total holdings to 37,400 shares valued at approximately $1.95 million.
• Equitable recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.27, with a total annualized dividend yield of 2.0% and a payout ratio of 87.10%.
• Analyst ratings show a mix of opinions, with the average target price set at $64.90 and nine analysts giving the stock a "Buy" rating, while one rated it as a "Hold."

EJF Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 22.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,400 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,885 shares during the quarter. EJF Capital LLC's holdings in Equitable were worth $1,948,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Boston Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Equitable in the first quarter valued at $108,264,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 5,536.0% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,109,113 shares of the company's stock valued at $110,286,000 after buying an additional 2,071,691 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 23.4% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 10,878,516 shares of the company's stock valued at $566,662,000 after buying an additional 2,061,496 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Equitable during the 1st quarter worth approximately $99,319,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets purchased a new stake in Equitable during the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,927,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EQH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Equitable from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Equitable from $66.00 to $63.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Equitable from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Equitable from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equitable presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $64.90.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Equitable news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.05, for a total transaction of $2,106,085.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 703,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,295,688.45. This trade represents a 5.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,790 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.09, for a total value of $367,271.10. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 88,678 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,796,593.02. This trade represents a 7.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 143,090 shares of company stock worth $7,549,152. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Equitable Stock Down 0.5%

Equitable stock traded down $0.29 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $52.93. 1,270,952 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,797,959. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.94, a current ratio of 0.14 and a quick ratio of 0.14. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.99 and a fifty-two week high of $56.61. The company's fifty day moving average price is $52.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $52.05. The company has a market cap of $15.85 billion, a PE ratio of 42.69 and a beta of 1.16.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 5th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 5th. Equitable's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.