Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) Downgraded by Bank of America to Neutral

Bank of America downgraded shares of Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report released on Thursday morning, MarketBeat reports.

EQNR has been the topic of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Equinor ASA in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. DZ Bank cut Equinor ASA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research cut Equinor ASA from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings raised Equinor ASA from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Equinor ASA in a research note on Friday, October 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and nine have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $24.71.

Equinor ASA Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:EQNR opened at $26.47 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.48. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $24.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $24.30. Equinor ASA has a 52-week low of $21.41 and a 52-week high of $28.26.

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $25.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.31 billion. Equinor ASA had a return on equity of 15.03% and a net margin of 4.74%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Equinor ASA will post 3.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equinor ASA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. Equinor ASA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.21%.

Institutional Trading of Equinor ASA

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mirabella Financial Services LLP purchased a new position in shares of Equinor ASA during the third quarter valued at approximately $730,757,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Equinor ASA by 30.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,759,942 shares of the company’s stock valued at $384,227,000 after buying an additional 3,659,611 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Equinor ASA by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,852,448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,923,000 after buying an additional 25,250 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Equinor ASA by 1,437.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,286,328 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,741,000 after buying an additional 2,137,642 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equinor ASA by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,827,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,550,000 after buying an additional 39,524 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 5.51% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Equinor ASA

Here are the key news stories impacting Equinor ASA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat consensus — Equinor reported adjusted EPS of $0.81 and revenue of $25.3B, topping estimates and showing resilience in volumes. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Signed a five‑year gas supply deal with Eneco in the Netherlands, securing medium‑term offtake and revenue visibility in a core European market. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Completed a $1.1B divestment of Argentina onshore (Vaca Muerta) to Vista Energy — improves near‑term cash flow and simplifies upstream exposure. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Capitalised on a US gas price spike by selling ~30% of U.S. onshore gas volumes into the spot market, boosting realized prices in January. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Commenced the first tranche (up to $375M) of a $1.5B 2026 buy‑back program — supports shareholder returns despite a smaller overall program. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Guidance and strategy: management targets ~3% production growth for 2026 while cutting CapEx by ~$4B and aiming for a 10% reduction in operating costs — mixed for near‑term growth vs. margin focus. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Cowen revisited Equinor’s sector positioning and valuation, which may recalibrate investor expectations but did not issue a clear buy call. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst moves point to limited upside — Bank of America downgraded EQNR from Buy to Neutral, and TD Cowen’s raised price target to $25 still sits below the recent trade price, implying downside. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 profit fell (weaker oil & gas prices) and some reports indicate Equinor reined in its share buyback after earnings weakness — a signal of more cautious capital deployment if commodity prices remain soft. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Allocation of bonus shares to insiders under the share‑savings plan may be viewed negatively by some investors as dilution or insider reward. Read More.

Equinor ASA Company Profile

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.