Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC Makes New $24.70 Million Investment in Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH

Key Points

• Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC acquired 474,225 shares of Equitable Holdings, valued at approximately $24.7 million, making it the firm's second largest holding.
• Equitable declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27, representing an annualized yield of 2.0% with a payout ratio of 87.10%.
• Nine research analysts have rated Equitable stock with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $64.90, despite recent reductions in price targets from several firms.

Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC bought a new stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 474,225 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,702,000. Equitable makes up approximately 4.8% of Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC owned 0.16% of Equitable at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Equitable in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Equitable in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Equitable in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its holdings in Equitable by 154.3% in the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 841 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Equitable during the first quarter worth approximately $80,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Equitable from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Equitable from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Equitable from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Equitable from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Equitable from $66.00 to $63.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equitable presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $64.90.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 4,000 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.09, for a total value of $212,360.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 19,827 shares in the company, valued at $1,052,615.43. This trade represents a 16.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.05, for a total transaction of $2,106,085.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 703,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,295,688.45. This trade represents a 5.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 143,090 shares of company stock valued at $7,549,152. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Equitable Stock Performance

Shares of EQH traded down $0.22 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $53.16. 2,460,682 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,882,265. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.94, a current ratio of 0.14 and a quick ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.92 billion, a PE ratio of 42.87 and a beta of 1.16. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $52.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.05. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.99 and a 52-week high of $56.61.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 5th were given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 5th. Equitable's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 87.10%.

About Equitable

Equitable Holdings, Inc, together with its consolidated subsidiaries, operates as a diversified financial services company worldwide. The company operates through six segments: Individual Retirement, Group Retirement, Investment Management and Research, Protection Solutions, Wealth Management, and Legacy.