Securian Asset Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EQIX)

Securian Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EQIX) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,204 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 72 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Equinix were worth $4,907,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Equinix in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in Equinix during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Equinix during the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings in Equinix by 108.7% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 48 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Thompson Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Equinix during the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Equinix

In related news, insider Kurt Pletcher sold 341 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $903.72, for a total value of $308,168.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,292,319.60. This trade represents a 19.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Raouf Abdel sold 1,331 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $903.71, for a total value of $1,202,838.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,945,508.09. The trade was a 16.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 19,054 shares of company stock valued at $17,466,950. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on EQIX. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $1,200.00 price target on shares of Equinix in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Moffett Nathanson upgraded Equinix from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Equinix from $1,085.00 to $1,065.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays upped their price target on Equinix from $810.00 to $822.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Equinix from $936.00 to $1,025.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $989.35.

Equinix Stock Up 0.7 %

Equinix stock opened at $836.24 on Wednesday. Equinix, Inc. has a twelve month low of $684.14 and a twelve month high of $994.03. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $918.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $908.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 97.81, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.74.

Equinix (NASDAQ:EQIX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $7.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.75 by $5.17. Equinix had a return on equity of 6.31% and a net margin of 9.32%. As a group, research analysts expect that Equinix, Inc. will post 33.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Equinix Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be paid a dividend of $4.69 per share. This represents a $18.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. This is an increase from Equinix’s previous quarterly dividend of $4.26. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. Equinix’s dividend payout ratio is 219.42%.

Equinix Company Profile

Equinix (Nasdaq: EQIX) is the world's digital infrastructure company . Digital leaders harness Equinix's trusted platform to bring together and interconnect foundational infrastructure at software speed. Equinix enables organizations to access all the right places, partners and possibilities to scale with agility, speed the launch of digital services, deliver world-class experiences and multiply their value, while supporting their sustainability goals.