Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $24.78, but opened at $23.87. Equinor ASA shares last traded at $23.78, with a volume of 796,054 shares trading hands.

The company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.82 by ($0.19). Equinor ASA had a return on equity of 19.97% and a net margin of 8.95%.

Equinor ASA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.89%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Equinor ASA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on EQNR shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Equinor ASA from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Equinor ASA from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Equinor ASA from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Equinor ASA from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Equinor ASA from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $29.45.

Institutional Trading of Equinor ASA

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Equinor ASA during the third quarter worth $1,933,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Equinor ASA by 52.7% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 69,718 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,991,000 after buying an additional 24,052 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Equinor ASA during the third quarter worth $2,509,000. Truist Financial Corp raised its position in Equinor ASA by 9.2% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 13,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $397,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167 shares during the period. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its position in Equinor ASA by 52.1% during the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 86,174 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,183,000 after acquiring an additional 29,516 shares during the period. 5.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Equinor ASA Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $24.88. The company has a market capitalization of $66.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.29, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.83.

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.