Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) Upgraded to Buy at Nordea Equity Research

Nordea Equity Research upgraded shares of Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on EQNR. StockNews.com cut shares of Equinor ASA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays upgraded shares of Equinor ASA from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Equinor ASA from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Equinor ASA from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Equinor ASA from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $25.80 to $30.90 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $29.45.

Equinor ASA Price Performance

EQNR stock opened at $23.01 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $23.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.87. Equinor ASA has a 12-month low of $21.85 and a 12-month high of $29.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.06, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by ($0.19). Equinor ASA had a net margin of 8.95% and a return on equity of 19.97%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Equinor ASA will post 3.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Equinor ASA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.09%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Equinor ASA’s payout ratio is currently 35.89%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equinor ASA

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Equinor ASA in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Equinor ASA in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Equinor ASA in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Equinor ASA in the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Equinor ASA by 363.5% in the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,928 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 1,512 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 5.51% of the company’s stock.

About Equinor ASA

Equinor ASA, an energy company, engages in the exploration, production, transportation, refining, and marketing of petroleum and other forms of energy in Norway and internationally. It operates through Exploration & Production Norway; Exploration & Production International; Exploration & Production USA; Marketing, Midstream & Processing; Renewables; and Other segments.