Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Stock

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) had its price objective lifted by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $61.00 to $62.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 14.54% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Equitable from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial lifted 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 began coverage on Equitable in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Equitable currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.83.

Equitable Price Performance

Shares of EQH opened at $54.13 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $51.36 and its 200-day moving average is $46.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 0.07 and a quick ratio of 0.12. The company has a market capitalization of $16.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.17 and a beta of 1.39. Equitable has a fifty-two week low of $32.96 and a fifty-two week high of $56.00.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In related news, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 1,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.68, for a total transaction of $79,356.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 17,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $825,162.36. The trade was a 8.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total value of $369,163.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 104,298 shares in the company, valued at $5,776,023.24. This trade represents a 6.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 131,698 shares of company stock worth $6,534,234 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equitable

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of EQH. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Equitable by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,278,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,003,705,000 after purchasing an additional 535,671 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in Equitable by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 19,032,270 shares of the company’s stock worth $897,752,000 after buying an additional 79,999 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Equitable in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $668,250,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,976,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $545,418,000 after acquiring an additional 338,205 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Equitable by 59.9% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,817,020 shares of the company’s stock worth $415,899,000 after acquiring an additional 3,303,449 shares during the period. 92.70% of the stock is currently 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.