Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH Stock Position Lifted by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management increased its stake in Equitable Holdings by 13.1% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 311,976 shares valued at about $15.0 million.
• Equitable reported better-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter, posting $1.62 EPS on revenue of $4.23 billion, both above analyst estimates.
• The company has a $1 billion share repurchase program in place, while analysts currently rate EQH as a Moderate Buy with an average target price of $58.09.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 13.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 311,976 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 36,135 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.11% of Equitable worth $14,965,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of EQH. Truist Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Equitable by 180.7% during the third quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 32,820 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,667,000 after purchasing an additional 21,127 shares during the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd raised its position in shares of Equitable by 26.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 241,175 shares of the company's stock worth $12,616,000 after purchasing an additional 50,455 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in shares of Equitable in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,684,000. Korea Investment CORP boosted its position in Equitable by 24.9% during the 3rd quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 299,391 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,203,000 after purchasing an additional 59,700 shares during the period. Finally, Algebris UK Ltd. boosted its position in Equitable by 28.6% during the 3rd quarter. Algebris UK Ltd. now owns 712,460 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,151,000 after purchasing an additional 158,488 shares during the period. 92.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equitable Stock Performance

Shares of EQH opened at $42.61 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.75, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. The firm's 50 day moving average is $39.49 and its 200-day moving average is $44.02. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $35.19 and a 12-month high of $56.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.00 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 1.13.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The company reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $4.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.95 billion. Equitable had a negative net margin of 7.26% and a positive return on equity of 232.29%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.35 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equitable announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 4th. Equitable's dividend payout ratio is -38.03%.

Insider Transactions at Equitable

In other news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 14,358 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.58, for a total transaction of $582,647.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 84,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,425,073.74. This trade represents a 14.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 10,000 shares of Equitable 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 completion of the transaction, the insider owned 124,218 shares in the company, valued at $5,023,375.92. The trade was a 7.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 128,116 shares of company stock valued at $5,205,010 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on EQH shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Equitable from $51.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Equitable from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Equitable from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Equitable from $59.00 to $54.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Equitable from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Equitable has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $58.09.

Equitable Profile

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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