Traders Buy High Volume of EQT Put Options (NYSE:EQT)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: Investors purchased 66,691 EQT put options, approximately 368% above the typical volume, signaling heightened hedging or bearish interest.
• Mixed earnings outlook: EQT’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, with EPS of $0.39 versus $0.41 expected and revenue down 29.2% year over year. Analysts also cut several near-term earnings estimates, although some longer-term forecasts were raised.
• Analysts remain moderately positive: EQT has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $68.09, well above its reported share price of $48.61. CEO Toby Rice separately sold $9.65 million in shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan.

EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors purchased 66,691 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 368% compared to the typical volume of 14,242 put options.

EQT News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting EQT this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its Q2 2027 EPS estimate to $0.40 from $0.38 and its Q1 2028 estimate to $1.70 from $1.67. It also increased its FY2028 forecast to $4.69 from $4.58, providing some support for the longer-term earnings outlook. However, Zacks maintained a “Hold” rating. Zacks Research estimates
• Positive Sentiment: A separate brokerage roundup characterized analyst sentiment toward EQT Corporation as “Moderate Buy,” which may limit downside and signal that some sell-side analysts see value following the stock’s recent weakness. EQT receives Moderate Buy rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are focused on the upcoming earnings release. The key issues will be production, realized natural-gas prices, cash flow and management’s outlook, particularly because EQT’s latest reported quarter missed analyst expectations on both EPS and revenue. What to know ahead of EQT’s earnings release
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks lowered several estimates, including Q3 2026 EPS to $0.44 from $0.47, Q4 2026 EPS to $0.75 from $0.76, FY2026 EPS to $3.91 from $3.95, and FY2027 EPS to $3.42 from $3.50. It also cut Q3 2027 EPS slightly to $0.77 from $0.78. These reductions reinforce concerns about near-term earnings momentum and natural-gas market conditions. EQT earnings estimate cuts
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports about EQT raising its offer for Japan’s Kakaku.com and selling Acuon Group concern the separate private-equity firm EQT AB, not EQT Corporation. They should not be treated as direct catalysts for NYSE: EQT. EQT to sell Acuon Group

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Toby Rice sold 175,328 shares of EQT stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.03, for a total transaction of $9,648,299.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,157,865 shares in the company, valued at $118,747,310.95. This trade represents a 7.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of EQT

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EQT. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of EQT by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 19,075 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,022,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of EQT by 35.4% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 773 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of EQT by 3.2% during the second quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 7,033 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $374,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of EQT by 76.0% during the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 528 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in EQT by 4.0% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,154 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $392,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.81% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $71.00 price target on shares of EQT in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of EQT from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup raised their target price on EQT from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on EQT from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of EQT from $65.00 to $63.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, EQT currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $68.09.

EQT Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EQT opened at $48.61 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.28 and a beta of 0.58. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $52.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.19. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. EQT has a 1-year low of $47.94 and a 1-year high of $68.24.

EQT (NYSE:EQT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.02). EQT had a net margin of 28.44% and a return on equity of 9.31%. The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 29.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that EQT will post 3.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

EQT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 5th were issued a dividend of $0.1650 per share. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 5th. EQT's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.31%.

EQT Company Profile

EQT Corporation is a natural gas producer headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company explores for, develops, and produces natural gas, natural gas liquids, and crude oil, with its operations concentrated in the Appalachian Basin, particularly the Marcellus and Utica shale formations.

In addition to its upstream production activities, EQT has interests in the midstream infrastructure used to gather, process, transport, and store natural gas. These assets support the movement of production from well sites to regional and interstate markets.

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