Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich Makes New Investment in Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH

Key Points

• Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp acquired a new stake of 126,645 shares in Equitable Holdings during Q3, valued at about $6.43 million.
• Equitable's board authorized a $1.00 billion share buyback (up to roughly 7.7% of outstanding shares), signaling management believes the stock may be undervalued.
• Corporate insiders sold 157,280 shares worth approximately $7.46 million over the past 90 days (including a 30,000-share sale by Nick Lane), leaving insiders with about 1.1% ownership.

Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich acquired a new stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 126,645 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,431,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Equitable by 92.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 882 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in Equitable by 17.2% in the second quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 7,042 shares of the company's stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 1,031 shares during the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Equitable by 7.4% during the second quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 103,912 shares of the company's stock worth $5,827,000 after purchasing an additional 7,138 shares in the last quarter. Andra AP fonden acquired a new stake in Equitable during the second quarter worth approximately $404,000. Finally, Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 50.2% during the 2nd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 21,112 shares of the company's stock worth $1,184,000 after buying an additional 7,060 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.70% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In other news, insider Nick Lane sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 99,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,762,998.70. This represents a 23.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 4,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.27, for a total value of $203,261.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 15,625 shares in the company, valued at approximately $738,593.75. This represents a 21.58% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 157,280 shares of company stock valued at $7,455,677 over the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Equitable Stock Performance

Shares of Equitable stock opened at $39.34 on Friday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $45.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.80. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.51 and a 12 month high of $56.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.16, a PEG ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42, a current ratio of 0.13 and a quick ratio of 0.13.

Equitable declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 7.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Equitable's payout ratio is currently -22.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on EQH. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Equitable in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Zacks Research cut shares of Equitable from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Equitable in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Wall Street Zen raised Equitable from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Equitable from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Equitable presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.64.

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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