Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on EQNR. DZ Bank raised shares of Equinor ASA from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Weiss Ratings raised Equinor ASA from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Pareto Securities upgraded Equinor ASA from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley raised Equinor ASA from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $40.40 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on Equinor ASA from $25.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $34.61.

Equinor ASA Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of Equinor ASA stock opened at $41.55 on Wednesday. Equinor ASA has a 52-week low of $21.41 and a 52-week high of $42.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $122.34 billion, a PE ratio of 21.87 and a beta of 0.35. 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 company’s fifty day moving average price is $30.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.26.

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.21. Equinor ASA had a net margin of 4.74% and a return on equity of 15.23%. The company had revenue of $25.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.31 billion. On average, analysts expect that Equinor ASA will post 3.46 EPS for the current year.

Equinor ASA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. This is an increase from Equinor ASA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Equinor ASA’s payout ratio is 64.21%.

Institutional Trading of Equinor ASA

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mirabella Financial Services LLP bought a new position in shares of Equinor ASA in the third quarter valued at approximately $730,757,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 3,659,611 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in Equinor ASA by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 9,250,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,600,000 after purchasing an additional 493,801 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC raised its position in Equinor ASA by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 4,288,512 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,338,000 after purchasing an additional 401,424 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Equinor ASA by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,852,448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,923,000 after purchasing an additional 25,250 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 5.51% of the company’s stock.

Key Equinor ASA News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research upgraded Equinor from “Hold” to “Strong Buy”, boosting investor sentiment toward the name and supporting momentum into the tape. Zacks Research Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple Zacks pieces this week placed EQNR on top lists (momentum, income and value), reinforcing buy-side interest from retail and quant flows that follow Zacks Rank #1 recommendations. Are You Looking for a Top Momentum Pick? Why Equinor (EQNR) is a Great Choice
• Positive Sentiment: Operational progress: Equinor has begun drilling at the Raia project in Brazil (a ~$9B development) — a long‑duration gas project expected to start in 2028 that strengthens future gas production and revenue visibility. Equinor Begins Drilling at Raia, Strengthens Brazil’s Gas Supply
• Positive Sentiment: Another broker note: Morgan Stanley reportedly raised Equinor’s rating, adding institutional endorsement that can attract fund flows. Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) Stock Rating Upgraded by Morgan Stanley
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider-related sale: Magnus Andreas Vadheim, a close associate of board member Geir Leon Vadheim, sold 25 shares at NOK 399 on March 27. The sale is very small in size and appears immaterial to company fundamentals, but it was disclosed under notifiable trading rules. Equinor ASA: Notifiable trading

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.