Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Lowers Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Price Target to $51.00

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) had its price target reduced by equities research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $53.00 to $51.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ target price suggests a potential upside of 35.14% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Mizuho set a $65.00 price target on Equitable in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Equitable from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Equitable from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. UBS Group lowered their price target on Equitable from $66.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Equitable in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.82.

Equitable Price Performance

EQH traded down $0.74 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $37.74. The company had a trading volume of 1,215,008 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,555,196. The company has a market capitalization of $10.58 billion, a PE ratio of -7.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.11. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $40.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.42, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13. Equitable has a twelve month low of $35.19 and a twelve month high of $56.61.

Equitable announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Equitable news, insider Nick Lane sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.04, for a total value of $400,400.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 124,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,973,688.72. This trade represents a 7.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 14,358 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.04, for a total transaction of $574,894.32. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 89,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,579,696.12. This trade represents a 13.84% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 100,848 shares of company stock worth $4,562,478 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equitable

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Equitable in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Equitable by 124.7% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Equitable in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. 92.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Equitable

Here are the key news stories impacting Equitable this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board-approved $1.0 billion buyback and recent dividend strengthen capital-return profile and can support the share price over time.
• Positive Sentiment: Major sell-side analysts maintain constructive ratings: UBS and Wells Fargo cut price targets but kept Buy/Overweight stances, leaving analysts’ implied upside near ~50%, which provides a bullish baseline if fundamentals/restructuring progress. UBS price-target story Wells Fargo note
• Neutral Sentiment: Consensus from MarketBeat/analysts remains a “Moderate Buy” with an average target around $58, indicating mixed dealer conviction despite short-term volatility.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Nick Lane sold 10,000 shares at ~$40.04 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5?1 plan (disclosed in an SEC Form 4), which can weigh on sentiment even if planned. Nick Lane SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 14,358 shares (also reported on Form 4 and under a 10b5?1 plan), another visible insider sale that can amplify near-term downside pressure. Jeffrey Hurd SEC filing

Equitable Company 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.