Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH Position Boosted by Thornburg Investment Management Inc.

Thornburg Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,867,643 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,370 shares during the period. Equitable comprises about 3.2% of Thornburg Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Thornburg Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Equitable were worth $247,179,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its stake in Equitable by 26.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 241,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,616,000 after purchasing an additional 50,455 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Equitable by 180.7% in the third quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 32,820 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,667,000 after purchasing an additional 21,127 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new position in shares of Equitable in the third quarter worth $1,684,000. Algebris UK Ltd. raised its holdings in Equitable by 28.6% during the 3rd quarter. Algebris UK Ltd. now owns 712,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,151,000 after buying an additional 158,488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its position in Equitable by 43.1% during the 3rd quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 149,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,580,000 after buying an additional 44,978 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Equitable Stock Up 0.1%

EQH stock opened at $41.17 on Thursday. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.53 and a fifty-two week high of $56.61. The company has a market capitalization of $11.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.12. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $46.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.10.

Equitable declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 11th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio is presently -22.41%.

Insider Transactions at Equitable

In other news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,790 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total value of $323,543.50. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 55,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,621,845.95. This represents a 10.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 4,300 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.27, for a total transaction of $203,261.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 15,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $738,593.75. This trade represents a 21.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 157,280 shares of company stock worth $7,455,677 in the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on EQH. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Equitable in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Raymond James Financial set a $60.00 price target on Equitable in a report on Monday, January 5th. Mizuho set a $65.00 price target on Equitable in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Zacks Research lowered Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Equitable from $58.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.27.

Equitable Profile

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.