Nordea Investment Management AB Boosts Stock Holdings in National Fuel Gas Company $NFG

Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) by 15.2% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 103,374 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 13,620 shares during the quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $9,541,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 355.1% during the second quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 405 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 3,883.3% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 478 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 466 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 60.1% in the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 613 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its position in National Fuel Gas by 4,547.4% in the 2nd quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 883 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 864 shares during the period. 73.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on NFG. Scotiabank downgraded National Fuel Gas from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $102.00 to $106.00 in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of National Fuel Gas in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, National Fuel Gas presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.00.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

NYSE:NFG opened at $81.15 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $80.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $84.34. The stock has a market cap of $7.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.61. National Fuel Gas Company has a twelve month low of $67.11 and a twelve month high of $94.13.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.14. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 22.86% and a return on equity of 21.76%. The firm had revenue of $466.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $534.57 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that National Fuel Gas Company will post 6.64 EPS for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were paid a $0.535 dividend. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.68%.

National Fuel Gas Company Profile

National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE: NFG) is a diversified energy company engaged primarily in the production, gathering, transmission, distribution and marketing of natural gas. The company operates through four principal segments: Exploration & Production, Pipeline & Storage, Utilities, and Energy Marketing. Its integrated asset base spans upstream development in the Appalachian Basin, regional pipeline networks, underground storage facilities, and regulated utility distribution systems.

In its Exploration & Production segment, National Fuel Gas focuses on developing natural gas reserves in the Marcellus and Utica shales, leveraging modern drilling and completion techniques.