EQT Corporation $EQT Holdings Raised by Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich

Key Points

• Bank Julius Baer increased its EQT stake by 2.4% in the third quarter to 970,699 shares valued at approximately $47.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 90.81% of the company.
• EQT’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with EPS of $0.42 versus the $0.37 consensus estimate and revenue of $1.77 billion. However, revenue declined 9.6% year over year.
• EQT raised its quarterly dividend to $0.17 per share, equivalent to a $0.68 annualized payout and a 1.2% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $68.

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich increased its stake in shares of EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT - Free Report) by 2.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 970,699 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after acquiring an additional 22,411 shares during the quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich owned about 0.16% of EQT worth $47,189,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of EQT. Hennessy Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in EQT by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 287,332 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $13,953,000 after acquiring an additional 2,100 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in EQT in the 3rd quarter worth $7,762,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd bought a new position in shares of EQT during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Vise Technologies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of EQT by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 6,116 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Americana Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of EQT by 42.3% during the 3rd quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 12,374 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $601,000 after purchasing an additional 3,680 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.81% of the company's stock.

EQT Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE EQT opened at $54.82 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. EQT Corporation has a 12-month low of $47.94 and a 12-month high of $68.24. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $53.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.92 and a beta of 0.66.

EQT (NYSE:EQT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.05. EQT had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 28.40%. The company had revenue of $1.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.52 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that EQT Corporation will post 3.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

EQT Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 4th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from EQT's previous quarterly dividend of $0.1650. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 4th. EQT's payout ratio is presently 15.64%.

Insider Transactions at EQT

In other EQT news, CEO Toby Rice sold 175,328 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.03, for a total value of $9,648,299.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,157,865 shares in the company, valued at approximately $118,747,310.95. The trade was a 7.51% 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. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of EQT in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on EQT from $79.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on EQT in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $66.00 price target for the company. Stephens raised their price target on EQT from $71.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of EQT in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $68.00.

About EQT

EQT Corporation is a natural gas exploration and production company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company develops and operates unconventional oil and gas properties, with a primary focus on natural gas and natural gas liquids produced from shale formations.

EQT's operations are concentrated in the Appalachian Basin, particularly the Marcellus and Utica shale formations in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio. Its activities include drilling, completion, production and management of natural gas wells, along with related gathering and infrastructure operations that support the transportation of its products to market.

The company traces its roots to Equitable Gas, founded in 1878, and has evolved through multiple stages of expansion and restructuring in the U.S.

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