Weiss Ratings Reaffirms "Hold (C)" Rating for Equitable (NYSE:EQH)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reiterated a "Hold (C)" rating for Equitable (NYSE:EQH), indicating a cautious outlook on the stock.
• Wells Fargo & Company raised its price target for Equitable from $63.00 to $65.00, while Morgan Stanley lowered theirs from $67.00 to $61.00, reflecting mixed sentiments among analysts.
• Insider trading activity showed significant selling, with COO Jeffrey J. Hurd and CEO Mark Pearson disposing of a combined total of 46,490 shares recently.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c)" rating reiterated by investment analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research report issued on Tuesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on EQH. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $67.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Equitable to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $63.00 price objective on shares of Equitable in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $64.45.

Equitable Price Performance

NYSE:EQH traded up $0.72 on Tuesday, hitting $49.61. The company had a trading volume of 965,198 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,825,505. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.09 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.94. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $52.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $51.99. Equitable has a 52 week low of $41.39 and a 52 week high of $56.61.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In other Equitable news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,790 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.09, for a total value of $367,271.10. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 88,678 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,796,593.02. This trade represents a 7.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.05, for a total transaction of $2,106,085.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 703,029 shares in the company, valued at $37,295,688.45. This trade represents a 5.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 132,468 shares of company stock valued at $7,117,270 over the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Equitable during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 592.6% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 561 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Equitable during the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in shares of Equitable during the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 92.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 882 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares in the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Equitable

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.

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