ABC Arbitrage SA Makes New Investment in Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR)

ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in shares of Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 381,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,043,000. Equinor ASA comprises approximately 1.3% of ABC Arbitrage SA’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Equinor ASA by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 16,288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 487 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC boosted its stake in Equinor ASA by 147.8% during the fourth quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 42,268 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,001,000 after buying an additional 25,208 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Equinor ASA during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Equinor ASA in the fourth quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in Equinor ASA in the fourth quarter worth $115,000. 5.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Equinor ASA Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EQNR opened at $23.11 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $23.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.48. Equinor ASA has a 1 year low of $21.85 and a 1 year high of $29.32. The company has a market capitalization of $64.53 billion, a PE ratio of 7.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.83.

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by ($0.19). Equinor ASA had a net margin of 8.49% and a return on equity of 20.33%. On average, research analysts predict that Equinor ASA will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Equinor ASA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.06%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Equinor ASA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. HSBC raised shares of Equinor ASA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com lowered Equinor ASA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Pareto Securities upgraded Equinor ASA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Equinor ASA from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Nordea Equity Research raised Equinor ASA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equinor ASA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.45.

Equinor ASA 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.