Meeder Asset Management Inc. Makes New $4.72 Million Investment in EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT)

Key Points

• Meeder Asset Management Inc. has invested approximately $4.72 million in EQT Corporation by acquiring 88,408 shares in the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including Invesco Ltd. and Castle Hook Partners LP, have recently increased their stakes in EQT, with institutional ownership reaching 90.81%.
• EQT's stock currently has a target price range from $54.00 to $70.00 according to various analysts, with a general rating of "Moderate Buy."

Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 88,408 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $4,724,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EQT. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in shares of EQT by 13.6% during the first quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,744 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $360,000 after purchasing an additional 807 shares during the period. Fiera Capital Corp grew its position in EQT by 50.7% in the first quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 1,036,448 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $55,377,000 after acquiring an additional 348,898 shares in the last quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in EQT in the 1st quarter worth approximately $85,000. Fielder Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of EQT by 4.3% in the first quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC now owns 93,830 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $5,013,000 after buying an additional 3,857 shares during the period. Finally, Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in EQT during the 1st quarter valued at $233,000. 90.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Sarah Fenton sold 12,438 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.94, for a total value of $646,029.72. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 13,297 shares of the company's stock, valued at $690,646.18. This represents a 48.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.65% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on EQT shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of EQT from $59.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Roth Capital initiated coverage on EQT in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $69.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $66.00 price objective (up previously from $62.00) on shares of EQT in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of EQT from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of EQT in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, EQT presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.84.

EQT Trading Down 2.5%

NYSE:EQT traded down $1.36 on Friday, hitting $52.39. 4,198,570 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,507,821. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. EQT Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $30.02 and a fifty-two week high of $61.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $56.17 and a 200-day moving average of $53.17. The stock has a market cap of $32.70 billion, a PE ratio of 28.31, a PEG ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.65.

EQT (NYSE:EQT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.78 billion. EQT had a return on equity of 6.24% and a net margin of 15.87%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.08) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that EQT Corporation will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EQT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.1575 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 6th. This represents a $0.63 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. EQT's payout ratio is presently 34.05%.

About EQT

EQT Corporation operates as a natural gas production company in the United States. The company sells natural gas and natural gas liquids to marketers, utilities, and industrial customers through pipelines located in the Appalachian Basin. It also offers marketing services and contractual pipeline capacity management services.