Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 15,270,000 shares, an increase of 7.5% from the December 31st total of 14,200,000 shares. Approximately 0.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 3,540,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EQNR. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Equinor ASA in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Equinor ASA in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Equinor ASA in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Equinor ASA by 363.5% in the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,928 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,512 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Equinor ASA during the fourth quarter worth about $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 5.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EQNR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Equinor ASA from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Equinor ASA from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $25.80 to $30.90 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Equinor ASA from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Barclays upgraded shares of Equinor ASA from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Equinor ASA from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $29.45.

Equinor ASA Stock Up 3.5 %

Shares of EQNR stock traded up $0.84 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $24.65. 1,135,444 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,217,676. Equinor ASA has a 1 year low of $21.85 and a 1 year high of $29.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market cap of $68.85 billion, a PE ratio of 7.56, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.83. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $23.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.91.

Equinor ASA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.68%. Equinor ASA’s payout ratio is 35.89%.

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.