Squarepoint Ops LLC Has $1.94 Million Position in Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. $NGS

Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in shares of Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:NGS) by 103.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 75,284 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 38,341 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC’s holdings in Natural Gas Services Group were worth $1,943,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Natural Gas Services Group by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 299,239 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,723,000 after acquiring an additional 15,550 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Natural Gas Services Group by 1.4% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 230,817 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,958,000 after purchasing an additional 3,221 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Natural Gas Services Group by 17.9% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 163,473 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,591,000 after purchasing an additional 24,853 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Natural Gas Services Group by 151.8% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 153,361 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,958,000 after purchasing an additional 92,444 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Natural Gas Services Group by 370.4% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 136,748 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,004,000 after purchasing an additional 107,679 shares during the period. 65.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jean K. Holley bought 3,752 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $26.58 per share, with a total value of $99,728.16. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 7,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,324. This trade represents a 92.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen Charles Taylor sold 11,457 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.95, for a total value of $320,223.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 385,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,772,824.40. This represents a 2.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 61,252 shares of company stock valued at $1,740,298 over the last quarter. 5.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Natural Gas Services Group Stock Up 0.1%

NGS stock opened at $31.24 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $28.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.32. Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.73 and a 12 month high of $32.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $392.63 million, a P/E ratio of 22.00 and a beta of 0.59.

Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 10th. The oil and gas company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $43.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $43.25 million. Natural Gas Services Group had a net margin of 10.92% and a return on equity of 7.21%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. will post 1.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Natural Gas Services Group announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, August 11th that permits the company to buyback $6.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Natural Gas Services Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Natural Gas Services Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. Natural Gas Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Natural Gas Services Group in a report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Natural Gas Services Group from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Natural Gas Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Natural Gas Services Group presently has an average rating of “Strong Buy” and an average target price of $35.50.

Natural Gas Services Group Profile

Natural Gas Services Group, Inc provides natural gas compression equipment and services to the energy industry in the United States. It engineers and fabricates, operates, rents, and maintains natural gas compressors for oil and natural gas production and plant facilities. It also designs, fabricates, and assembles compressor units for rental or sale; and designs, manufactures, and sells a line of reciprocating natural gas compressor frames, cylinders, and parts.