Insurance Sector Growth Stalls, Three Stocks to Avoid
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Apr 24 2026
0mins
Source: Yahoo Finance
- Sector Growth Weakness: The insurance industry has only grown 2.4% over the past six months, significantly lagging behind the S&P 500's 4.8% increase, indicating waning investor confidence and a need for caution.
- Equitable Holdings' Ongoing Challenges: As one of America's oldest financial institutions, Equitable Holdings has seen only a 2.2% annual revenue growth, with its pre-tax profit margin declining by 13.3 percentage points over the past two years, reflecting a persistent drop in profitability.
- Fidelity National Financial's Poor Performance: Despite being the largest title insurance company in the U.S., FNF has experienced a 1.6% annual decline in net premiums earned, and its earnings per share have fallen by 1.3% annually over the past five years, indicating unfavorable market dynamics and failure to enhance shareholder value.
- Everest Group's Dim Future Outlook: Everest Group is projected to see a 5.2% decline in sales over the next 12 months, with earnings per share decreasing by 17.7% annually, highlighting a significant reduction in profitability and raising red flags for investors regarding its market performance.
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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: 42.520
Low
57.00
Averages
61.33
High
66.00
Current: 42.520
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.
- Dividend Increase: Equitable Holdings has declared a quarterly dividend increase from $0.27 to $0.30 per share, marking an 11.1% rise that reflects the company's ongoing improvement in profitability and cash flow, thereby boosting investor confidence.
- Yield Performance: The forward yield of 2.83% not only attracts income-seeking investors but also enhances the stock's market appeal, potentially driving further price appreciation as the company demonstrates financial strength.
- Payment Schedule: The new dividend will be payable on June 8, with a record date of June 1 and an ex-dividend date also set for June 1, ensuring shareholders receive timely returns and highlighting the company's commitment to shareholder value.
- Merger Outlook: Against the backdrop of the $1.5 trillion merger with Corebridge, the dividend increase indicates Equitable Holdings' confidence in the integration process, which is expected to further strengthen the company's market position and financial stability.
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- Massive Market Potential: With a market cap of $237 billion, Arm is poised to capture a significant share of the server CPU market, projected to quadruple to $137 billion, thereby significantly enhancing its future sales and profits.
- New Product Launch: Arm unveiled its first data center CPU in March, specifically designed for agentic AI workloads, and its unparalleled power efficiency may help it stand out in a competitive market, further solidifying its market position.
- Profit Growth Expectations: Dai anticipates that by 2030, Arm's sales will exceed $26 billion, with earnings per share reaching $9.83, indicating a substantial increase in the company's profitability over the next decade, attracting more investor attention.
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- Surging Market Demand: The rise of AI agents is significantly increasing CPU demand, with Arm Holdings' stock continuing to rise following bullish analyst commentary, expected to increase by 17% to $300 per share, reflecting strong market confidence in its future growth.
- Distinct Technical Advantage: Arm stands out in the server CPU market due to its unparalleled power efficiency, with expectations to capture a sizable share of a market projected to grow fourfold to $137 billion by 2030, thereby driving substantial sales and profit growth for the company.
- Optimistic Financial Outlook: Analysts predict that Arm's sales will surge fivefold over the next decade to $26 billion, with earnings per share reaching $9.83, indicating strong performance and market potential in AI workloads.
- Caution for Investors: Despite the positive outlook for Arm, the Motley Fool analyst team has not included it in their current list of top investment stocks, advising investors to consider multiple factors before making investment decisions.
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- Quarterly Cash Dividend: Equitable Holdings has declared a cash dividend of $0.30 per share of common stock, payable on June 8, 2026, aimed at enhancing shareholder returns and attracting more investor interest.
- Preferred Stock Dividend: The company also announced a cash dividend of $328.125 per share on Series A 5.25% Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, payable on June 15, 2026, demonstrating its commitment to prioritizing preferred shareholders.
- Series C Preferred Dividend: A cash dividend of $268.750 per share on Series C 4.30% Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock will also be paid on June 15, 2026, further solidifying the company's stability in the capital markets.
- Asset Management Scale: As of March 31, 2026, Equitable Holdings manages and administers assets totaling $1.1 trillion, indicating its leadership position and robust client base in the financial services industry.
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- Dividend Growth Expectation: Equitable Holdings (EQH) is likely to announce a dividend increase in May, continuing its 7-year streak of consecutive dividend growth, with analysts projecting an annual dividend of $2.64 per share, implying a quarterly dividend of nearly $0.66, representing a 144.4% increase from the prior payout of $0.27.
- Historical Dividend Performance: The company last declared a dividend of $0.27 per share in February 2026, yielding 2.52%, and raised its dividend by nearly 12.5% from $0.24 last May, showcasing its commitment to shareholder returns.
- Sustained Growth Rate: Equitable Holdings has achieved a 5-year dividend growth rate of approximately 9.69% while maintaining a 51% annual payout ratio, indicating a strong commitment to returning value to shareholders.
- Future Earnings Report: Investors should note that Equitable Holdings (EQH) is expected to report its Q2 2026 financial results on August 4, 2026, after market close, which may further influence market expectations regarding its dividend policy.
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- Leadership Announcement: Corebridge and Equitable have unveiled the leadership team for their merged entity, with Corebridge CEO Marc Costantini set to lead as CEO and Equitable CEO Mark Pearson as executive chair, ensuring governance stability post-merger.
- Customer and Asset Scale: The merger will create a retirement and asset management firm with over 12 million customers and nearly $1.5 trillion in assets, significantly enhancing market competitiveness and driving long-term shareholder value.
- Integration Support Team: Key leaders across finance, operations, legal, investments, wealth management, retirement, insurance, technology, and risk management have been appointed to facilitate the integration process, ensuring a smooth transition for all business operations.
- Merger Timeline: The merger is expected to close by the end of 2026, pending shareholder and regulatory approvals, marking a strategic collaboration aimed at improving customer outcomes and enhancing shareholder value.
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