Insider Buying: EQB (TSE:EQB) Insider Purchases C$1,998,560.00 in Stock

Key Points

• Loblaw Companies Limited bought 16,000 EQB shares at an average C$124.91, investing nearly C$2.0 million and increasing its ownership to 1,474,100 shares. The purchase follows several additional buys in July and August.
• EQB shares fell to C$124.64, while the company reported C$2.12 in quarterly EPS on C$393.04 million in revenue. EQB also increased its quarterly dividend to C$0.61 per share, representing a 2.0% yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: most analysts maintain Buy or Outperform ratings, with a consensus price target of C$138.30, while Raymond James downgraded the stock to Underperform with a C$120 target.

EQB Inc. (TSE:EQB - Get Free Report) insider Loblaw Companies Limited bought 16,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of C$124.91 per share, for a total transaction of C$1,998,560.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 1,474,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at C$184,129,831. The trade was a 1.10% increase in their ownership of the stock.

Loblaw Companies Limited also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, August 24th, Loblaw Companies Limited acquired 8,000 shares of EQB stock. The stock was acquired at an average price of C$133.47 per share, for a total transaction of C$1,067,760.00.
• On Wednesday, August 26th, Loblaw Companies Limited bought 8,000 shares of EQB stock. The shares were acquired at an average cost of C$137.01 per share, for a total transaction of C$1,096,080.00.
• On Thursday, August 20th, Loblaw Companies Limited bought 8,000 shares of EQB stock. The shares were acquired at an average price of C$134.00 per share, with a total value of C$1,072,000.00.
• On Tuesday, August 4th, Loblaw Companies Limited purchased 8,000 shares of EQB stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of C$142.40 per share, with a total value of C$1,139,200.00.
• On Thursday, August 6th, Loblaw Companies Limited acquired 8,000 shares of EQB stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of C$137.62 per share, for a total transaction of C$1,100,960.00.
• On Wednesday, July 15th, Loblaw Companies Limited bought 6,100 shares of EQB stock. The stock was bought at an average cost of C$143.88 per share, with a total value of C$877,668.00.
• On Friday, July 17th, Loblaw Companies Limited bought 8,000 shares of EQB stock. The stock was bought at an average cost of C$144.62 per share, with a total value of C$1,156,960.00.
• On Monday, July 20th, Loblaw Companies Limited bought 8,000 shares of EQB stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of C$141.57 per share, for a total transaction of C$1,132,560.00.

EQB Stock Performance

Shares of TSE EQB traded down C$4.15 during midday trading on Friday, hitting C$124.64. 164,848 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 120,521. EQB Inc. has a 12-month low of C$83.93 and a 12-month high of C$150.32. The firm has a market cap of C$4.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of C$136.99 and a 200 day moving average price of C$123.60.

EQB (TSE:EQB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 26th. The company reported C$2.12 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$393.04 million for the quarter. EQB had a return on equity of 6.16% and a net margin of 6.61%. As a group, equities analysts expect that EQB Inc. will post 12.5988235 earnings per share for the current year.

EQB Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This is an increase from EQB's previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. EQB's payout ratio is presently 44.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on EQB from C$131.00 to C$146.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. National Bank Financial boosted their price objective on shares of EQB from C$120.00 to C$143.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. TD upped their price objective on EQB from C$123.00 to C$154.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Desjardins cut their target price on EQB from C$155.00 to C$150.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered EQB from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from C$136.00 to C$120.00 in a report on Friday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of C$138.30.

Key EQB News

Here are the key news stories impacting EQB this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target for EQB to C$146 from C$131 and reiterated an “outperform” rating, indicating confidence in the company’s longer-term outlook. BayStreet.CA analyst ratings
• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital maintained a “buy” rating and a C$145 price target, citing the PC Financial acquisition’s potential to diversify EQB’s revenue and deposit base and support future earnings growth. BMO analyst commentary
• Positive Sentiment: Desjardins lowered its target to C$150 from C$155 but retained a “buy” rating, while CIBC cut its target to C$154 from C$165 and assigned an “outperformer” rating. Both targets remain well above the recent trading level. Analyst target changes
• Neutral Sentiment: The analyst revisions show a more cautious valuation outlook after the quarterly results, but the majority of cited firms continue to recommend buying or outperforming EQB shares.
• Negative Sentiment: EQB reported a C$127 million third-quarter loss, driven largely by a C$219 million provision for credit losses associated with the PC Financial transaction. Although revenue increased and the company reported C$2.12 in quarterly EPS under the cited earnings measure, the headline loss raises concerns about near-term credit quality and integration costs. MarketWatch EQB credit-loss report
• Negative Sentiment: Raymond James downgraded EQB from “market perform” to “underperform” and reduced its price target to C$120 from C$136, making it the clearest bearish signal among the latest analyst updates. Raymond James analyst rating

About EQB

EQB Inc formerly Equitable Group Inc trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange TSX: EQB and EQB.PR.C and serves over 360000 Canadians through its wholly owned subsidiary Equitable Bank Canadas Challenger Bank. Equitable Bank has grown to become the countrys eighth largest independent Schedule I bank with a clear mandate to drive real change in Canadian banking to enrich peoples lives. At Equitable Bank we are as invested in our employees as we are in our business. Thats why we are consistently recognized as one of Canadas Top Employers a rating that comes from our 1300+ employees.

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