Trexquant Investment LP Boosts Stock Position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP significantly increased its stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. by 191.3%, owning a total of 119,733 shares valued at approximately $6.24 million after acquiring 78,624 shares in the first quarter.
• Equitable has seen considerable interest from other institutional investors, with 92.70% of its stock now owned by institutional holders, highlighting strong market confidence in the company.
• The company's stock currently holds an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from research analysts, with a consensus price target of $64.90.

Trexquant Investment LP lifted its stake in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH - Free Report) by 191.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 119,733 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 78,624 shares during the quarter. Trexquant Investment LP's holdings in Equitable were worth $6,237,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Equitable by 310.2% in the first quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 17,349 shares of the company's stock valued at $904,000 after purchasing an additional 13,120 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable in the first quarter valued at approximately $252,000. Diversified Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 51.5% in the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 42,276 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,202,000 after acquiring an additional 14,380 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable in the first quarter valued at approximately $255,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Equitable by 15.1% in the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 154,482 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,047,000 after acquiring an additional 20,317 shares during the period. 92.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Equitable news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.05, for a total value of $2,106,085.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 703,029 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $37,295,688.45. This trade represents a 5.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 2,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.86, for a total value of $134,836.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 26,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,348,411.86. This trade represents a 9.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 143,090 shares of company stock worth $7,549,152 in the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on EQH shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Equitable from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on 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 decreased their price objective on Equitable from $66.00 to $63.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Equitable from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Equitable from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equitable currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $64.90.

Equitable Price Performance

Equitable stock traded down $0.67 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $53.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,704,028 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,888,788. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.99 and a fifty-two week high of $56.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.94, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 0.14. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $53.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.00 billion, a PE ratio of 43.07 and a beta of 1.16.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

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

Equitable 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.