Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.21 EPS

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.21, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $25.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.31 billion. Equinor ASA had a net margin of 5.27% and a return on equity of 14.34%.

Here are the key takeaways from Equinor ASA’s conference call:

• Equinor delivered record production of 2,137,000 barrels per day in 2025 and expects around 3% production growth in 2026, with cash flow from operations after tax guided to roughly $16bn in 2026 and ~ $18bn in 2027 at current price assumptions.
• Management reduced its 2026–2027 CapEx outlook by about $4 billion, guiding organic CapEx of ~$13 billion for 2026 and ~$9 billion for 2027 while prioritizing investments (~60% NCS, 30% international oil & gas, 10% power).
• Equinor reaffirmed shareholder returns: quarterly cash dividend raised to $0.39 per share with an ambition to grow it by $0.02 annually, and a $1.5 billion share buyback programme for 2026 (first tranche $375m).
• Empire Wind is >60% complete with total CapEx now expected at about $7.5 billion (≈$3bn remaining) and expected ITC benefit of ~$2.5bn, but the project remains exposed to legal risk and potential tariffs despite a preliminary injunction allowing work to resume.
• Safety remains a material concern after a colleague was fatally injured at Mongstad in September; management emphasized the need for further improvement despite overall safety trends improving.

Equinor ASA Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of EQNR stock traded down $0.59 on Thursday, hitting $26.20. 1,864,540 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,612,163. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.38. Equinor ASA has a fifty-two week low of $21.41 and a fifty-two week high of $28.26. The business has a 50-day moving average of $24.02 and a 200 day moving average of $24.28.

Equinor ASA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. Equinor ASA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.82%.

Trending Headlines about Equinor ASA

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat estimates — Equinor reported $0.81 EPS and revenue of $25.3B, topping consensus and showing resilience versus forecasts. MarketBeat Q4 Summary
• Positive Sentiment: Share buy‑back and dividend support — Company will commence the first tranche (up to USD 375M) of the 2026 buy‑back and proposed a cash dividend for Q4, providing direct capital return to investors. Buy‑back Announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Asset sale boosts cash — Equinor agreed to sell Argentina onshore (Vaca Muerta) assets to Vista Energy for $1.1B, strengthening near‑term cash flow. Divestment Article
• Positive Sentiment: Short‑term merchant gains — Equinor sold ~30% of its U.S. gas volumes into the January spot spike, lifting cash generation. Reuters: Spot Sales
• Positive Sentiment: New supply contract — Equinor signed a five‑year gas supply deal with Eneco for deliveries to the Netherlands, adding contracted volume and revenue visibility. Reuters: Eneco Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider share allocations — Equinor notified allocation of bonus shares to insiders under its share‑savings plan; routine but monitored by investors for signalling. Notifiable Trading
• Negative Sentiment: Broker downgrades and price‑target moves — Bank of America cut EQNR from Buy to Neutral, and TD Cowen raised its target to $25 but keeps a Hold (the target sits below recent trade), creating downward revision risk. Finviz Analyst Notes
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings tone and buyback changes prompt caution — Coverage highlights an earnings slide vs. last year and commentary that share‑buyback plans were trimmed in response to weaker results, which clouds near‑term upside despite the announced tranche. Financial Post: Buyback Change WSJ: Earnings Slide

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Equinor ASA in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Equinor ASA from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 17th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Equinor ASA from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America lowered shares of Equinor ASA from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Equinor ASA from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and nine have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $24.71.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equinor ASA

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Equinor ASA by 11.1% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 148,723 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,932,000 after purchasing an additional 14,913 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Equinor ASA in the 1st quarter valued at $263,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Equinor ASA by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 112,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,968,000 after buying an additional 2,112 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Equinor ASA during the 1st quarter worth about $816,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Equinor ASA by 50.3% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,230 shares of the company’s stock valued at $131,000 after acquiring an additional 1,751 shares in the last quarter. 5.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.