Equitable Holdings announces $1 billion buyback plan amid challenges
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Jul 29 2025
0mins
Should l Buy EQH?
Source: Coinmarketcap
Equitable Holdings Inc's stock price fell by 5.01% as it crossed below the 5-day SMA, reflecting broader market weakness with the Nasdaq-100 down 0.69% and the S&P 500 down 0.84%.
Despite the stock decline, Equitable announced a $1 billion share buyback plan, indicating confidence in its future performance, even as it faces challenges in meeting earnings expectations. This buyback is seen as a strategic move to enhance shareholder value amid a tough market environment.
The implications of this buyback could be significant, as it may help stabilize the stock price and signal to investors that the company is committed to returning value to shareholders, despite current market conditions.
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Analyst Views on EQH
Wall Street analysts forecast EQH stock price to rise
9 Analyst Rating
8 Buy
1 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 40.220
Low
57.00
Averages
61.33
High
66.00
Current: 40.220
Low
57.00
Averages
61.33
High
66.00
About EQH
Equitable Holdings, Inc. is a financial services holding company, which consists of complementary businesses, such as Equitable, AllianceBernstein and Equitable Advisors. Its segments include Retirement, Asset Management, and Wealth Management. Retirement segment provides retirement solutions to individual and institutional clients, including individual and group annuities, retirement savings plans, and institutional savings products. Asset Management segment provides diversified investment management and related services globally to a range of clients through three main client channels: Institutional, Retail and Private Wealth. Wealth Management segment offers discretionary and non-discretionary investment advisory accounts, financial planning and advice, life insurance, and annuity products. Equitable provides retirement and protection strategies to individuals, families and businesses. AllianceBernstein is an investment management firm that offers diversified investment services.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
Three Significant Buybacks Announced—What Investors Are Interpreting from Them
Walmart's Share Buyback Program: Walmart has announced a $30 billion share buyback program, its largest to date, allowing the company to reduce its outstanding shares and potentially increase earnings per share growth.
Strong Financial Performance: In 2025, Walmart delivered an impressive performance with a total return of approximately 24%, driven by significant growth in e-commerce sales and advertising revenue.
Lyft's Stock Decline: Lyft experienced a significant drop in its stock price, down over 25% following disappointing earnings reports, despite achieving a 50% return in 2025.
Equitable's Market Position: Equitable has shown resilience with a $1 billion share buyback plan, indicating confidence in its future performance, despite facing challenges in meeting earnings expectations.
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- Asset Allocation Shift: Six Flags previously accounted for 6.7% of HG Vora's assets under management, but due to a 66% decline in stock price over the past year, the fund opted to redirect capital towards more promising investments.
- Financial Performance: As of February 17, 2026, Six Flags has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion and reported a net income loss of $1.6 billion over the past year, reflecting a continued decline in the company's competitive position in the market.
- Future Plans: Despite the challenges, CEO John Reilly stated that the company will continue to invest in family attractions and infrastructure upgrades; however, HG Vora's exit suggests a lack of confidence in the company's recovery timeline.
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- Complete Liquidation: HG Vora Capital Management fully liquidated its stake in Six Flags Entertainment by selling 2,175,000 shares for an estimated value of $49.42 million, indicating a significant shift in the fund's investment strategy regarding the company.
- Change in Holdings: This sale eliminated Six Flags from HG Vora's portfolio, which previously accounted for 6.7% of assets under management, reflecting the fund's diminishing confidence in the company's future performance, especially after a 60% drop in stock price over the past year.
- Poor Financial Performance: Six Flags reported a substantial loss last year, including a $1.5 billion non-cash impairment charge, and while management remains optimistic about future prospects, the company continues to face significant financial challenges that have eroded investor confidence.
- Underperforming Market: With a 66% decline in stock price over the past year, significantly underperforming the S&P 500, HG Vora's exit further underscores a pessimistic outlook on Six Flags, which also failed to make it onto The Motley Fool's list of top investment stocks.
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- Payment Schedule: The dividend is set to be paid on March 11, with a record date of March 4 and an ex-dividend date also on March 4, ensuring shareholders receive their returns in a timely manner.
- Cash Generation Target: Equitable aims for $1.8 billion in cash generation by 2026, indicating progress in its capital-light strategy, which is designed to enhance long-term financial health and shareholder returns.
- Business Transformation Potential: Despite the market underappreciating Equitable's business transformation, the strong growth potential highlighted in the Q4 2025 earnings report may attract increased investor attention in the future.
See More
Equitable Holdings Q4 Earnings Miss Expectations
- Earnings Miss: Equitable Holdings reported a Q4 non-GAAP EPS of $1.73, falling short of expectations by $0.02, indicating pressure on profitability that may affect investor confidence.
- Significant Revenue Decline: The company's Q4 revenue of $3.28 billion represents a 9.4% year-over-year decrease, missing estimates by $760 million, reflecting challenges in the market environment and slow progress in business transformation.
- Underappreciated Business Transformation: Despite the current disappointing earnings report, the market may be underestimating Equitable Holdings' potential for business transformation, which could enhance competitiveness and improve financial performance through innovation and optimization in the future.
- Leadership Change: AllianceBernstein's appointment of Onur Erzan as president may bring new strategic direction and leadership to Equitable Holdings, potentially aiding the company in seeking breakthroughs in future market competition.
See More
Equitable Holdings to Announce Q4 Earnings on February 4
- Earnings Announcement Schedule: Equitable Holdings (EQH) is set to release its Q4 2023 earnings on February 4 after market close, with consensus EPS estimates at $1.75, reflecting an 11.5% year-over-year increase, and revenue estimates at $4.04 billion, also up 11.6%, indicating a positive financial trajectory for the company.
- Historical Performance Review: Over the past two years, EQH has beaten EPS estimates 50% of the time and revenue estimates only 13% of the time, highlighting volatility in its profitability that investors should monitor for future stability in earnings.
- Estimate Revision Dynamics: In the last three months, EPS estimates have seen four upward revisions and five downward adjustments, while revenue estimates experienced three upward and two downward revisions, reflecting mixed market sentiment regarding the company's future performance, which could impact investor confidence.
- Strategic Goal Outlook: Equitable Holdings aims to achieve $2 billion in annual cash flow by 2027, indicating that the company is accelerating EPS growth through strategic investments, which investors should watch closely for potential impacts on its business transformation.
See More
Three Significant Buybacks Announced—What Investors Are Interpreting from Them
Walmart's Share Buyback Program: Walmart has announced a $30 billion share buyback program, its largest to date, allowing the company to reduce its outstanding shares and potentially increase earnings per share growth.
Strong Financial Performance: In 2025, Walmart delivered an impressive performance with a total return of approximately 24%, driven by significant growth in e-commerce sales and advertising revenue.
Lyft's Stock Decline: Lyft experienced a significant drop in its stock price, down over 25% following disappointing earnings reports, despite achieving a 50% return in 2025.
Equitable's Market Position: Equitable has shown resilience with a $1 billion share buyback plan, indicating confidence in its future performance, despite facing challenges in meeting earnings expectations.
See More
HG Vora Fully Liquidates Six Flags Entertainment Stake
- Stake Liquidation: HG Vora Capital Management has fully liquidated its 2,175,000 shares of Six Flags Entertainment (FUN), with an estimated transaction value of $49.42 million, indicating a pessimistic outlook on the company's future prospects.
- Asset Allocation Shift: Six Flags previously accounted for 6.7% of HG Vora's assets under management, but due to a 66% decline in stock price over the past year, the fund opted to redirect capital towards more promising investments.
- Financial Performance: As of February 17, 2026, Six Flags has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion and reported a net income loss of $1.6 billion over the past year, reflecting a continued decline in the company's competitive position in the market.
- Future Plans: Despite the challenges, CEO John Reilly stated that the company will continue to invest in family attractions and infrastructure upgrades; however, HG Vora's exit suggests a lack of confidence in the company's recovery timeline.
See More
HG Vora Capital Fully Liquidates Six Flags Entertainment Stake
- Complete Liquidation: HG Vora Capital Management fully liquidated its stake in Six Flags Entertainment by selling 2,175,000 shares for an estimated value of $49.42 million, indicating a significant shift in the fund's investment strategy regarding the company.
- Change in Holdings: This sale eliminated Six Flags from HG Vora's portfolio, which previously accounted for 6.7% of assets under management, reflecting the fund's diminishing confidence in the company's future performance, especially after a 60% drop in stock price over the past year.
- Poor Financial Performance: Six Flags reported a substantial loss last year, including a $1.5 billion non-cash impairment charge, and while management remains optimistic about future prospects, the company continues to face significant financial challenges that have eroded investor confidence.
- Underperforming Market: With a 66% decline in stock price over the past year, significantly underperforming the S&P 500, HG Vora's exit further underscores a pessimistic outlook on Six Flags, which also failed to make it onto The Motley Fool's list of top investment stocks.
See More
Equitable Holdings Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.268
- Quarterly Dividend Announcement: Equitable Holdings, Inc. declares a quarterly dividend of $0.268 per share, reflecting the company's ongoing commitment to maintaining stable cash flows, which is likely to attract more investor interest.
- Payment Schedule: The dividend is set to be paid on March 11, with a record date of March 4 and an ex-dividend date also on March 4, ensuring shareholders receive their returns in a timely manner.
- Cash Generation Target: Equitable aims for $1.8 billion in cash generation by 2026, indicating progress in its capital-light strategy, which is designed to enhance long-term financial health and shareholder returns.
- Business Transformation Potential: Despite the market underappreciating Equitable's business transformation, the strong growth potential highlighted in the Q4 2025 earnings report may attract increased investor attention in the future.
See More
Equitable Holdings Q4 Earnings Miss Expectations
- Earnings Miss: Equitable Holdings reported a Q4 non-GAAP EPS of $1.73, falling short of expectations by $0.02, indicating pressure on profitability that may affect investor confidence.
- Significant Revenue Decline: The company's Q4 revenue of $3.28 billion represents a 9.4% year-over-year decrease, missing estimates by $760 million, reflecting challenges in the market environment and slow progress in business transformation.
- Underappreciated Business Transformation: Despite the current disappointing earnings report, the market may be underestimating Equitable Holdings' potential for business transformation, which could enhance competitiveness and improve financial performance through innovation and optimization in the future.
- Leadership Change: AllianceBernstein's appointment of Onur Erzan as president may bring new strategic direction and leadership to Equitable Holdings, potentially aiding the company in seeking breakthroughs in future market competition.
See More
Equitable Holdings to Announce Q4 Earnings on February 4
- Earnings Announcement Schedule: Equitable Holdings (EQH) is set to release its Q4 2023 earnings on February 4 after market close, with consensus EPS estimates at $1.75, reflecting an 11.5% year-over-year increase, and revenue estimates at $4.04 billion, also up 11.6%, indicating a positive financial trajectory for the company.
- Historical Performance Review: Over the past two years, EQH has beaten EPS estimates 50% of the time and revenue estimates only 13% of the time, highlighting volatility in its profitability that investors should monitor for future stability in earnings.
- Estimate Revision Dynamics: In the last three months, EPS estimates have seen four upward revisions and five downward adjustments, while revenue estimates experienced three upward and two downward revisions, reflecting mixed market sentiment regarding the company's future performance, which could impact investor confidence.
- Strategic Goal Outlook: Equitable Holdings aims to achieve $2 billion in annual cash flow by 2027, indicating that the company is accelerating EPS growth through strategic investments, which investors should watch closely for potential impacts on its business transformation.
See More
