Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Takes $2.69 Million Position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 57,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,689,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of EQH. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Equitable by 700.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,563,172 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,126,000 after buying an additional 1,367,837 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equitable by 608.1% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,468,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,289,000 after buying an additional 1,261,466 shares during the period. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Equitable by 56.3% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,659,691 shares of the company’s stock worth $130,351,000 after buying an additional 957,828 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its holdings in shares of Equitable by 1,092.4% in the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 875,589 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,302,000 after buying an additional 802,160 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Equitable in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,939,000. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Equitable

In other news, insider Nick Lane sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.65, for a total value of $1,291,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 121,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,282,137.85. This trade represents a 17.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.65, for a total value of $1,549,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 629,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,536,349.35. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 105,032 shares of company stock valued at $5,443,966 in the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Equitable Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE:EQH opened at $52.84 on Thursday. Equitable Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $35.49 and a 12-month high of $56.00. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $52.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.79. The company has a market capitalization of $16.27 billion, a PE ratio of 13.83 and a beta of 1.39. 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 (NYSE:EQH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.08). Equitable had a net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 85.70%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Equitable Holdings, Inc. will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equitable Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Equitable’s payout ratio is 25.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on EQH. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Equitable from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Equitable from $62.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Equitable from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $47.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.75.

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.