KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Takes Position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 108,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,094,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of EQH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 20.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 908,653 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,191,000 after purchasing an additional 153,457 shares in the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Equitable during the 4th quarter worth $295,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Equitable by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,117,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,001,000 after buying an additional 148,180 shares in the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC boosted its position in Equitable by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 752,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,476,000 after buying an additional 78,725 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,939,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Equitable news, insider Nick Lane sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.12, for a total transaction of $255,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 139,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,109,411.76. The trade was a 3.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.65, for a total value of $1,549,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 629,939 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,536,349.35. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 103,332 shares of company stock valued at $5,364,610 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on EQH. Truist Financial increased their price target on Equitable from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Equitable from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Equitable from $62.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Equitable has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.75.

Equitable Price Performance

EQH opened at $54.29 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $16.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.21 and a beta of 1.39. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $52.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.18. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $35.49 and a fifty-two week high of $56.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.08). Equitable had a return on equity of 85.70% and a net margin of 10.51%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.13%.

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.