Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Reduce" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts give Equinor a consensus recommendation of "Reduce" from 17 brokerages (4 sell, 12 hold, 1 strong buy) with an average 1‑year price target of $34.61.
• Equinor beat quarterly estimates with EPS of $0.81 versus $0.60 and revenue of $25.26B versus $21.31B, and analysts forecast full‑year EPS of 3.46 while the company reports a return on equity of 15.23%.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.39 (from $0.37), an annualized $1.56 and a 4.1% yield; shares opened at $38.26 with a 12‑month range of $21.96–$43.46 and a market cap of $112.66B.

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Reduce" from the seventeen brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have assigned a hold recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $34.6133.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on EQNR shares. UBS Group raised shares of Equinor ASA from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Pareto Securities cut shares of Equinor ASA from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Equinor ASA from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Equinor ASA from $25.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Equinor ASA from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th.

Equinor ASA Trading Up 3.9%

Shares of EQNR opened at $38.26 on Friday. Equinor ASA has a 12 month low of $21.96 and a 12 month high of $43.46. The stock's 50-day moving average is $34.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market cap of $112.66 billion, a PE ratio of 20.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.13.

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $25.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.31 billion. Equinor ASA had a return on equity of 15.23% and a net margin of 4.74%. Equities analysts forecast that Equinor ASA will post 3.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equinor ASA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This is a boost from Equinor ASA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Equinor ASA's payout ratio is 64.21%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Equinor ASA by 1,794.0% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,269 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,202 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equinor ASA by 86.2% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,318 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new position in shares of Equinor ASA during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in shares of Equinor ASA by 119.2% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 1,876 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 1,020 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arax Advisory Partners grew its position in shares of Equinor ASA by 78.6% during the fourth quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 2,377 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 1,046 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 5.51% of the company's stock.

About Equinor ASA

Equinor ASA NYSE: EQNR is a Norway-based integrated energy company headquartered in Stavanger. Historically established as Statoil in the 1970s to develop Norway's petroleum resources, the company changed its name to Equinor in 2018 to reflect a strategic shift toward a broader energy portfolio. Equinor's operations span the full upstream value chain, including exploration, development and production of oil and natural gas, alongside trading and marketing activities that support its global commercial operations.

In recent years Equinor has pursued a transition strategy that combines continued development of conventional oil and gas resources with growing investments in low‑carbon energy.

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