Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Sells 197,549 Shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lessened its stake in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) by 92.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 16,151 shares of the company’s stock after selling 197,549 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Equitable were worth $679,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of EQH. MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in Equitable in the 3rd quarter worth $587,000. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in Equitable during the 2nd quarter valued at $831,000. Maverick Capital Ltd. increased its stake in Equitable by 230.0% in the second quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 36,840 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,505,000 after purchasing an additional 25,678 shares during the period. TCW Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 94.6% during the second quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 134,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,484,000 after purchasing an additional 65,232 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its stake in shares of Equitable by 55.3% during the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 62,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,564,000 after purchasing an additional 22,346 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.53, for a total value of $316,834.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 105,246 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,002,342.38. This trade represents a 5.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.42, for a total value of $148,470.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 19,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $819,596.82. The trade was a 15.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 100,166 shares of company stock worth $4,443,605 over the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Equitable Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:EQH opened at $47.33 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.83 billion, a PE ratio of -43.42 and a beta of 1.40. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $31.31 and a 12-month high of $50.51. The business has a 50 day moving average of $45.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53. Equitable had a positive return on equity of 76.47% and a negative net margin of 2.64%. The company had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.15 earnings per share. Equitable’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 6.05 EPS for the current year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. Equitable’s payout ratio is currently -88.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Equitable from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Equitable from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Equitable from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equitable has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $48.70.

Equitable Company Profile

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.