Swedbank AB Raises Stock Position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH

Key Points

• Swedbank AB increased its stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. by 2.2%, acquiring an additional 15,353 shares to own approximately 721,838 shares worth $40.5 million.
• Several hedge funds recently invested in Equitable, with 92.70% of the stock now owned by institutional investors, indicating a strong interest in the company.
• Equitable declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, representing a 2.0% yield, with a payout ratio of 87.10%.

Swedbank AB increased its position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 721,838 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 15,353 shares during the period. Swedbank AB owned about 0.24% of Equitable worth $40,495,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Equitable by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 88,561 shares of the company's stock worth $4,613,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,145 shares of the company's stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 6,367 shares of the company's stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 4,539 shares of the company's stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invst LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Invst LLC now owns 24,165 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,140,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EQH has been the subject of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Equitable from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Equitable from $66.00 to $63.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Equitable to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Equitable has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $64.55.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,551 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.22, for a total transaction of $2,144,455.22. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 690,678 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $37,448,561.16. This trade represents a 5.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,790 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.69, for a total transaction of $364,555.10. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 81,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,396,566.72. This trade represents a 7.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 155,580 shares of company stock valued at $8,258,518 in the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Equitable Trading Up 1.5%

Equitable stock traded up $0.79 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $54.84. The stock had a trading volume of 280,220 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,822,291. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.94. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $40.81 and a 52-week high of $56.61. The firm has a market cap of $16.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.21 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a fifty day moving average of $52.78 and a 200 day moving average of $52.11.

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 of this dividend was Tuesday, August 5th. Equitable's dividend payout ratio is 87.10%.

Equitable Company Profile

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.