London Co. of Virginia Boosts Stock Holdings in Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH

Key Points

• London Co. of Virginia massively increased its stake in Equitable, boosting holdings by 4,141.8% in Q3 to 1,235,243 shares after acquiring an additional 1,206,122 shares, valued at about $62.7 million (≈0.43% of the company).
• Equitable's board authorized a $1.0 billion share buyback (up to 7.7% of outstanding shares) and the company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share (≈2.9% yield), signalling management support for the stock.
• Despite heavy institutional ownership (≈92.7%), insiders sold 146,190 shares worth about $6.92 million over the past 90 days, including notable sales by COO Jeffrey Hurd and Nick Lane that materially reduced their positions.

London Co. of Virginia lifted its position in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 4,141.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,235,243 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,206,122 shares during the period. London Co. of Virginia owned approximately 0.43% of Equitable worth $62,726,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Equitable in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Equitable during the third quarter valued at $36,000. Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in shares of Equitable during the third quarter valued at $37,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted 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 valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MAI Capital Management increased its holdings in Equitable by 64.0% in the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 938 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Equitable

In other news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,790 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total transaction of $323,543.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 55,023 shares in the company, valued at $2,621,845.95. This trade represents a 10.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total transaction of $1,429,500.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 99,958 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,762,998.70. The trade was a 23.08% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 146,190 shares of company stock worth $6,924,120. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Equitable Trading Up 1.5%

Equitable stock opened at $37.80 on Tuesday. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $36.79 and a 52-week high of $56.61. The company has a market cap of $10.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.13.

Equitable declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 4th. Equitable's payout ratio is -22.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on EQH. Wall Street Zen raised Equitable from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Raymond James Financial set a $60.00 price target on shares of Equitable in a research note on Monday, January 5th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Equitable in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Equitable from $59.00 to $54.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $60.64.

Equitable Company 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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