Quantbot Technologies LP Acquires 181,443 Shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. $EQH

Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its stake in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) by 208.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 268,637 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 181,443 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Equitable were worth $13,641,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in shares of Equitable by 592.6% in the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 561 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Equitable during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Hilltop National Bank purchased a new stake in Equitable during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Equitable by 92.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 882 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 424 shares during the period. Finally, MAI Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of Equitable by 64.0% during the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 938 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Zacks Research cut Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Equitable in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Wall Street Zen raised Equitable from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Equitable in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.27.

Insider Activity at Equitable

In related news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,790 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total transaction of $323,543.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 55,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,621,845.95. This trade represents a 10.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 4,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.27, for a total value of $203,261.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 15,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $738,593.75. This trade represents a 21.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 157,280 shares of company stock valued at $7,455,677. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Equitable Price Performance

NYSE:EQH opened at $40.18 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42, a current ratio of 0.10 and a quick ratio of 0.13. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.36 and a 1 year high of $56.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.34, a PEG ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.12. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $48.33.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio is currently -22.41%.

Equitable declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Equitable

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.