Equitable (NYSE:EQH) Upgraded by Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft to Buy Rating

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) was upgraded by research analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Friday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage presently has a $58.00 target price on the stock, up from their prior target price of $47.00. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft’s target price suggests a potential upside of 18.25% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays increased their target price on Equitable from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Equitable from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $54.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Equitable from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Equitable from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Equitable presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.64.

Equitable Stock Performance

NYSE:EQH opened at $49.05 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $15.37 billion, a PE ratio of -45.00 and a beta of 1.38. Equitable has a 1-year low of $31.76 and a 1-year high of $50.51.

Equitable (NYSE:EQH) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.53. Equitable had a negative net margin of 2.64% and a positive return on equity of 76.47%. The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.15 EPS. Equitable’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Equitable will post 6.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Equitable

In related news, COO Jeffrey J. Hurd sold 6,666 shares of Equitable stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.53, for a total transaction of $316,834.98. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 105,246 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,002,342.38. The trade was a 5.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO William James Iv Eckert sold 1,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.68, for a total transaction of $79,356.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 17,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 130,032 shares of company stock valued at $6,031,759. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equitable

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Natixis Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Equitable during the second quarter valued at approximately $772,000. Prudential PLC bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the 2nd quarter worth $465,000. Choreo LLC bought a new stake in shares of Equitable during the 2nd quarter worth $268,000. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Equitable by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 113,320 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,630,000 after acquiring an additional 1,443 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Equitable by 86.5% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 435,567 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,797,000 after purchasing an additional 202,021 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.70% of the company’s stock.

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.