Barclays Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Stock Price

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) had its target price reduced by equities research analysts at Barclays from $57.00 to $49.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Barclays‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 27.26% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Equitable from $60.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Mizuho set a $65.00 price target on Equitable in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Equitable in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on shares of Equitable in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $53.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equitable currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $58.09.

Equitable Stock Performance

Shares of Equitable stock opened at $38.51 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $40.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.25. Equitable has a 1-year low of $35.19 and a 1-year high of $56.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42. The company has a market cap of $10.79 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.99, a PEG ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.11.

Equitable declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Nick Lane sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total value of $1,429,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 99,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,762,998.70. This represents a 23.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 39,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.20, for a total value of $1,834,140.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 652,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,166,059. This trade represents a 5.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 100,848 shares of company stock worth $4,562,478 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Equitable

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Truist Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Equitable by 180.7% in the third quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 32,820 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,667,000 after acquiring an additional 21,127 shares in the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its position in shares of Equitable by 26.5% during the third quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 241,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,616,000 after acquiring an additional 50,455 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in Equitable during the third quarter worth $1,684,000. Korea Investment CORP boosted its position in Equitable by 24.9% in the third quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 299,391 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,203,000 after purchasing an additional 59,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Algebris UK Ltd. boosted its position in Equitable by 28.6% in the third quarter. Algebris UK Ltd. now owns 712,460 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,151,000 after purchasing an additional 158,488 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

About Equitable

Equitable Holdings, Inc (NYSE: EQH) is a leading provider of life insurance, annuities and retirement plan services in the United States. Through its insurance subsidiary, AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company, the firm offers a broad range of permanent and term life insurance products designed to help individuals and families manage risk and build wealth. In addition, Equitable provides fixed, variable and indexed annuity solutions to support income planning in retirement, as well as a suite of group retirement and pension plan services for employers and plan sponsors.

The company also maintains an asset management arm that delivers investment strategies across equities, fixed income and alternative asset classes for both retail and institutional clients.