Equitable Holdings Shares Climb 3.26% on $240M Volume (437th) Amid Mortality Pressures and Strategic Rebalancing

Equitable Holdings (EQH) surged 3.26% on August 12, 2025, with a trading volume of $240 million, ranking 437th in the day’s equity market activity. The stock’s performance followed a mixed second-quarter earnings report where revenue fell short of estimates due to elevated mortality claims in its individual life insurance segment and weaker fee-based earnings linked to lower equity market levels.

Management highlighted resilience in retirement and wealth management, citing robust net inflows and stable asset management results despite industry headwinds. CEO Mark Pearson attributed the quarter’s challenges to elevated mortality claims but emphasized progress in organic growth and strategic initiatives. CFO Robin Raju outlined capital deployment priorities, including share repurchases and debt reduction, while reaffirming confidence in achieving 2026 EPS growth targets.

Analysts probed key risks and opportunities, including sensitivity of RILA profitability to interest rates and the impact of product mix shifts on earnings stability. The company noted that legacy RILA runoff and higher-margin product transitions are expected to stabilize over the next few quarters. Management also emphasized ongoing innovation in retirement solutions and disciplined expense management as growth drivers.

The strategy of buying the top 500 stocks by daily trading volume and holding them for one day generated a total profit of $2,550 from 2022 to the present. The maximum drawdown during this period was -15.2%, recorded on October 27, 2022, indicating significant volatility despite overall profitability.