Melius Research Initiates Coverage on EQT (NYSE:EQT)

Key Points

• Melius Research has initiated coverage on EQT with a "buy" rating and a price target of $64.00, indicating a potential upside of 25.56% from the company's previous close.
• A consensus of 15 research analysts have rated EQT as a "Moderate Buy," with a consensus price target of $60.67.
• In its latest earnings report, EQT missed earnings estimates, reporting $0.45 EPS versus the consensus estimate of $0.52 EPS.

Equities research analysts at Melius Research started coverage on shares of EQT (NYSE:EQT - Get Free Report) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm set a "buy" rating and a $64.00 price target on the oil and gas producer's stock. Melius Research's price target suggests a potential upside of 25.56% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Mizuho raised shares of EQT to an "outperform" rating and set a $66.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Roth Capital lowered EQT from a "strong-buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $75.00 to $57.00 in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of EQT in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on EQT from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of EQT from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, EQT currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.67.

EQT Stock Up 0.9%

EQT stock traded up $0.43 on Wednesday, hitting $50.97. 356,592 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,334,746. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $55.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $53.14. EQT has a 12-month low of $31.45 and a 12-month high of $61.02. The stock has a market cap of $31.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71.

EQT (NYSE:EQT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.78 billion. EQT had a net margin of 15.87% and a return on equity of 6.24%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.08) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that EQT will post 3.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at EQT

In other EQT news, EVP Sarah Fenton sold 12,438 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.94, for a total transaction of $646,029.72. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,297 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $690,646.18. This trade represents a 48.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Vicky A. Bailey sold 4,259 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.56, for a total transaction of $219,594.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of EQT

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in EQT by 14.1% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,582 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of EQT by 2.6% in the first quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 8,281 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $416,000 after buying an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Generali Investments Management Co LLC boosted its holdings in shares of EQT by 14.1% during the 1st quarter. Generali Investments Management Co LLC now owns 1,711 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the period. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in EQT by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,783 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $309,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. raised its holdings in EQT by 48.4% in the 1st quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 693 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the period. 90.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

EQT Company Profile

EQT Corporation operates as a natural gas production company in the United States. The company sells natural gas and natural gas liquids to marketers, utilities, and industrial customers through pipelines located in the Appalachian Basin. It also offers marketing services and contractual pipeline capacity management services.

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