Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Stock

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) had its price objective lifted by equities research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $58.00 to $62.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 15.34% from the company’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Equitable from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Equitable in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.67.

Equitable Price Performance

Shares of EQH opened at $53.75 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $16.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.07 and a beta of 1.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $50.00 and a 200-day moving average of $45.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07. Equitable has a 52 week low of $32.96 and a 52 week high of $54.82.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last issued its 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, analysts forecast that Equitable will post 7.24 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Equitable

In other news, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.31, for a total value of $1,419,300.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 639,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,275,514.09. The trade was a 4.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.65, for a total value of $364,296.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 92,209 shares in the company, valued at $5,039,221.85. This represents a 6.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 125,032 shares of company stock valued at $6,165,071. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Equitable by 195.6% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 532 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Equitable by 61.5% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 646 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Equitable by 111.2% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 678 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of Equitable by 33.2% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 799 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the period. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equitable during the third quarter worth $48,000. 92.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.