Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Stock

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) had its target price raised by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $61.00 to $62.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price points to a potential upside of 16.81% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley 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 Friday, February 14th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Equitable from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Equitable from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Equitable from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.67.

Equitable Stock Performance

Shares of EQH traded down $0.22 on Tuesday, reaching $53.08. 352,225 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,803,208. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 0.07 and a quick ratio of 0.12. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $51.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.48. The firm has a market cap of $16.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.90 and a beta of 1.39. Equitable has a 12 month low of $32.96 and a 12 month high of $56.00.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.08). Equitable had a return on equity of 85.70% and a net margin of 10.51%. Equities analysts forecast that Equitable will post 7.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Nick Lane sold 25,000 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.84, for a total transaction of $1,146,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 141,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,492,273.36. This trade represents a 15.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Pearson sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.31, for a total value of $1,419,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 639,939 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,275,514.09. This represents a 4.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 131,698 shares of company stock valued at $6,534,234 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equitable

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EQH. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 352 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Equitable by 61.5% in 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. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in Equitable by 111.2% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 678 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in shares of Equitable by 33.2% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 199 shares during the period. Finally, Mizuho Bank Ltd. boosted its position in Equitable by 61.4% during the 4th quarter. Mizuho Bank Ltd. now owns 1,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 430 shares during the period. 92.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.