Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. Sells 29,000 Shares of EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT)

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. reduced its stake in EQT Corporation by 49.2%, selling 29,000 shares and retaining 30,000 shares worth $1,603,000.
• EQT Corporation reported $0.45 earnings per share, missing analysts' expectations, with revenue of $1.60 billion compared to expected $1.78 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.1575 per share, reflecting a 1.2% yield and a payout ratio of 34.05%.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. lessened its stake in shares of EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT - Free Report) by 49.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,000 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 29,000 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd.'s holdings in EQT were worth $1,603,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wedbush Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of EQT in the 1st quarter valued at $216,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its holdings in shares of EQT by 36.3% in the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 205,679 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $10,989,000 after purchasing an additional 54,779 shares in the last quarter. Kingsman Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of EQT in the 1st quarter valued at $1,284,000. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of EQT by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,661 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $356,000 after purchasing an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of EQT in the 1st quarter valued at $226,000. Institutional investors own 90.81% of the company's stock.

EQT Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:EQT opened at $51.45 on Thursday. EQT Corporation has a 52-week low of $30.88 and a 52-week high of $61.02. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $55.42 and a 200 day moving average of $53.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.11 billion, a PE ratio of 27.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71.

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 the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.07). EQT had a return on equity of 6.24% and a net margin of 15.87%. The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.08) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that EQT Corporation will post 3.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

EQT Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on EQT. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $70.00 target price (up previously from $60.00) on shares of EQT in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $68.00 target price (up previously from $66.00) on shares of EQT in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of EQT in a report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays raised their price objective on EQT from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on EQT from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, EQT currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $60.95.

Insider Activity

In other EQT 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 transaction of $646,029.72. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 13,297 shares in the company, valued at $690,646.18. This represents a 48.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Vicky A. Bailey sold 4,259 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.56, for a total transaction of $219,594.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.65% of the company's stock.

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.

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