Wells Fargo & Company Has Lowered Expectations for Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Stock Price

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) had its price target cut by Wells Fargo & Company from $57.00 to $56.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target indicates a potential upside of 49.34% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on EQH. Weiss Ratings lowered Equitable from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research lowered Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group lowered their target price on Equitable from $66.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods began coverage on Equitable in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $53.00 target price for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $60.00 target price on Equitable in a report on Monday, January 5th. One investment 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Equitable currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.73.

Equitable Stock Down 2.6%

NYSE:EQH opened at $37.50 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.51 billion, a PE ratio of -7.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $40.42 and a 200-day moving average of $45.07. Equitable has a 52 week low of $35.19 and a 52 week 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.

Equitable declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 11th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Equitable

In other news, insider Nick Lane sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total transaction of $1,429,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 99,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,762,998.70. The trade was a 23.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 14,358 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.04, for a total value of $574,894.32. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 89,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,579,696.12. This represents a 13.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 139,161 shares of company stock worth $6,096,913. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EQH. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Equitable by 92.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 882 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Equitable in the second quarter worth approximately $1,712,000. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new stake in Equitable in the second quarter worth approximately $1,133,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its position in Equitable by 1,126.5% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 291,126 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,332,000 after purchasing an additional 267,389 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in Equitable by 45.8% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 626,017 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,120,000 after purchasing an additional 196,729 shares during the period. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equitable News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Equitable this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board-approved $1.0 billion share buyback (up to ~7.7% of shares) provides balance‑sheet support and buyback-driven EPS/capital return optionality. MarketBeat EQH Company Page
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly dividend of $0.27 (annualized $1.08, ~2.8% yield) remains in place, offering income support for shareholders. MarketBeat Dividend Report
• Positive Sentiment: Despite recent trims, the analyst consensus remains largely positive (many Buy/Outperform ratings and a consensus target near the mid‑$50s), implying continued upside from current levels. MarketBeat Analyst Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS cut its price target from $66 to $58 but kept a “buy” rating — the target still implies sizable upside vs. the current price. UBS PT Lowered to $58 (AmericanBankingNews)
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo trimmed its target to $56 and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered theirs to $51, yet both maintain overweight/outperform stances — these trims reduce upside expectations slightly but are not full downgrades. Benzinga: Wells Fargo & KBW Coverage TickerReport: KBW PT Lowered
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: CEO/COO-level insiders (Nick Lane and Jeffrey Hurd) sold shares under pre-arranged 10b5‑1 plans (combined disclosed sales on/around April 8), which can sap near‑term sentiment despite being pre-planned. InsiderTrades: EQH Insider Sales

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.