Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Trims Stock Position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH

Key Points

• Mirae Asset Global Investments cut its stake in Equitable by 92.7% in Q4, selling 49,959 shares and ending the period with 3,908 shares valued at about $186,000.
• Company insiders have been net sellers, disposing of 128,116 shares in the last 90 days (including sales by COO Jeffrey Hurd and Nick Lane) worth roughly $5.2 million, leaving insiders with about 1.10% ownership.
• Equitable's board authorized a $1.00 billion share buyback (up to 7.7% of shares) and the firm pays a $0.27 quarterly dividend (≈2.6% yield), while analysts' consensus rates the stock a "Moderate Buy" with an average target near $56.91.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. decreased its stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 92.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,908 shares of the company's stock after selling 49,959 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Equitable were worth $186,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of EQH. Capital International Investors lifted its position in Equitable by 49.5% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,012,837 shares of the company's stock valued at $559,232,000 after acquiring an additional 3,645,301 shares during the last quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Equitable by 0.3% during the third quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,867,643 shares of the company's stock worth $247,179,000 after purchasing an additional 12,370 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Equitable by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,822,908 shares of the company's stock worth $229,812,000 after purchasing an additional 193,640 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Equitable by 1.3% during the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 4,297,008 shares of the company's stock worth $218,202,000 after purchasing an additional 55,798 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,637,414 shares of the company's stock valued at $184,704,000 after purchasing an additional 72,267 shares during the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 14,358 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.04, for a total value of $574,894.32. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 89,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,579,696.12. The trade was a 13.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Nick Lane sold 10,000 shares of the 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 sale, the insider directly owned 124,218 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,023,375.92. This represents 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 128,116 shares of company stock valued at $5,205,010. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Equitable Stock Performance

NYSE EQH opened at $41.17 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $11.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.11. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $35.19 and a 52-week high of $56.61. The business's 50-day moving average price is $39.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42.

Equitable announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 11th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 7.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th were paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 4th. Equitable's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -22.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on EQH shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Equitable from $53.00 to $51.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Equitable from $59.00 to $54.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Barclays decreased their price objective on Equitable from $57.00 to $49.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Equitable from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $60.00 target price on shares of Equitable in a report on Monday, January 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $56.91.

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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