Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.08 EPS

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.08), Zacks reports. Equitable had a positive return on equity of 76.47% and a negative net margin of 2.64%.

Equitable Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EQH traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $53.45. The stock had a trading volume of 4,248,491 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,816,143. The company has a quick ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63. The company has a market capitalization of $16.75 billion, a P/E ratio of -49.03 and a beta of 1.39. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $49.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.20. Equitable has a fifty-two week low of $32.54 and a fifty-two week high of $54.82.

Equitable Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th were issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 26th. Equitable’s dividend payout ratio is currently -88.07%.

Insider Activity at Equitable

In other Equitable news, insider Nick Lane sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.65, for a total transaction of $1,291,250.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 121,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,282,137.85. The trade was a 17.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 1,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.68, for a total transaction of $79,356.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 17,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $825,162.36. This trade represents a 8.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 161,698 shares of company stock valued at $7,904,806 over the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on EQH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Equitable in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Equitable from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Equitable from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $54.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Equitable has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.67.

Equitable Company 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.