Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Shares of Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) have been assigned an average rating of “Reduce” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $26.90.

EQNR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Equinor ASA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. UBS Group upgraded Equinor ASA from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Equinor ASA from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered Equinor ASA from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $30.50 to $25.80 in a research note on Thursday, August 29th.

Equinor ASA Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EQNR opened at $25.12 on Thursday. Equinor ASA has a 12-month low of $24.08 and a 12-month high of $34.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The company has a market cap of $73.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.83. The company’s fifty day moving average is $26.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.17.

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $25.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.93 billion. Equinor ASA had a return on equity of 20.65% and a net margin of 9.11%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.74 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Equinor ASA will post 3.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equinor ASA Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a — dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 19th were paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 19th. This represents a dividend yield of 4.1%. Equinor ASA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.34%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Equinor ASA

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Equinor ASA by 52.6% in the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 12,114 shares of the company’s stock worth $383,000 after acquiring an additional 4,178 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Equinor ASA in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Equinor ASA by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 20,431 shares of the company’s stock worth $646,000 after acquiring an additional 1,176 shares in the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Equinor ASA by 452.6% in the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 52,880 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,673,000 after acquiring an additional 43,310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Equinor ASA by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 50,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,600,000 after acquiring an additional 1,189 shares in the last quarter. 5.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Equinor ASA Company Profile

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.