Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) Stock Position Lessened by Kempner Capital Management Inc.

Kempner Capital Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) by 15.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 135,385 shares of the company’s stock after selling 23,987 shares during the period. Equitable comprises approximately 3.5% of Kempner Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Kempner Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Equitable were worth $6,386,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Equitable by 195.6% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of Equitable by 61.5% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 646 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Equitable during the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Equitable by 86.3% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares during the period. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in Equitable by 298.3% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,689 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 1,265 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EQH has been the subject of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of 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 note on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Equitable from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Equitable in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.67.

Equitable Price Performance

Shares of Equitable stock opened at $54.26 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $48.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $31.76 and a 52 week high of $54.82.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53. Equitable had a positive return on equity of 76.47% and a negative net margin of 2.64%. The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. Equitable’s revenue was down 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 26th. Equitable’s payout ratio is -88.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equitable

In related news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.53, for a total transaction of $316,834.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 105,246 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,002,342.38. This trade represents a 5.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.43, for a total value of $1,422,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 648,555 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,760,963.65. The trade was a 4.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 161,698 shares of company stock valued at $7,904,806 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Equitable Profile

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.