Equinor ASA (EQNR) Competitors

Shell (NYSE:SHEL) and Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) are both large-cap energy companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, dividends, media sentiment and valuation.

Which has more volatility and risk, SHEL or EQNR?

Shell has a beta of 0.44, suggesting that its stock price is 56% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equinor ASA has a beta of 0.59, suggesting that its stock price is 41% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is SHEL or EQNR more profitable?

Equinor ASA has a net margin of 7.60% compared to Shell's net margin of 4.93%. Equinor ASA's return on equity of 16.91% beat Shell's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Shell	4.93%	10.66%	5.01%
Equinor ASA	7.60%	16.91%	5.43%

Do analysts prefer SHEL or EQNR?

Shell presently has a consensus price target of $78.69, suggesting a potential upside of 9.30%. Equinor ASA has a consensus price target of $22.71, suggesting a potential downside of 10.72%. Given Shell's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Shell is more favorable than Equinor ASA.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Shell	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	10 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.93
Equinor ASA	5 Sell rating(s)	7 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	1.94

Which has better valuation & earnings, SHEL or EQNR?

Shell has higher revenue and earnings than Equinor ASA. Equinor ASA is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Shell, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Shell	$289.03B	0.74	$16.09B	$4.34	16.59
Equinor ASA	$103.77B	0.72	$8.81B	$3.01	8.45

Do institutionals and insiders hold more shares of SHEL or EQNR?

28.6% of Shell shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 5.5% of Equinor ASA shares are held by institutional investors. 1.0% of Shell shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Equinor ASA shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Does the media prefer SHEL or EQNR?

In the previous week, Shell had 37 more articles in the media than Equinor ASA. MarketBeat recorded 40 mentions for Shell and 3 mentions for Equinor ASA. Shell's average media sentiment score of 0.74 beat Equinor ASA's score of 0.61 indicating that Shell is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Shell	20 Very Positive mention(s)	5 Positive mention(s)	11 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Equinor ASA	0 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is SHEL or EQNR a better dividend stock?

Shell pays an annual dividend of $2.86 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. Equinor ASA pays an annual dividend of $1.22 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.8%. Shell pays out 65.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Equinor ASA pays out 40.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Equinor ASA is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Summary

Shell beats Equinor ASA on 13 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.