BofA Global Research upgraded Equinor (EQNR.OL) to buy from neutral, after the research firm revised its gas price expectations upward.
"For >6 months now, our European [Title Transfer Facility] gas price forecasts have followed spot higher - alongside our [price objective] following Equinor's share price higher without leaving significant upside throughout. However, this week our Commodities Research colleagues upgraded their TTF forecast to average [EUR95 per megawatt-hour (~$32 per million British thermal units)] this winter - >20% above strip despite assuming Strait of Hormuz transits restart over the same timeframe," according to a Friday note.
The research firm now expects the Norwegian energy company to exit 2027 with over $10 billion in net cash, creating upside potential for BofA's unchanged $4 billion buyback estimate. After raising their free cash flow assumption by 23% for full-year 2026 and 2027, analysts noted their estimates now sit 140% ahead of Visible Alpha consensus for 2027.
As a result, BofA raised its price objective to 465 Norwegian kroner from 400 kroner.