Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Invests $7.98 Million in National Fuel Gas Company $NFG

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 103,391 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $7,983,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in NFG. State Street Corp lifted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 3.4% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,035,345 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $343,962,000 after acquiring an additional 132,855 shares during the period. Energy Income Partners LLC increased its position in National Fuel Gas by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC now owns 2,589,824 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $243,340,000 after purchasing an additional 28,755 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 103.4% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,138,153 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $197,501,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,067 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,816,217 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $145,446,000 after purchasing an additional 121,099 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 653.6% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,582,782 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $126,718,000 after purchasing an additional 1,372,742 shares in the last quarter. 73.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

National Fuel Gas Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE NFG opened at $81.91 on Friday. National Fuel Gas Company has a 1-year low of $75.17 and a 1-year high of $97.06. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $79.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 3.20 and a quick ratio of 3.07.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.10. National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 19.04% and a net margin of 26.97%.The company had revenue of $537.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $564.33 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.64 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that National Fuel Gas Company will post 7.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a $0.555 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is an increase from National Fuel Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.83%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NFG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of National Fuel Gas from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $105.50.

National Fuel Gas 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.