Great Lakes Advisors LLC Buys New Shares in National Fuel Gas Company $NFG

Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new position in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 79,464 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $4,410,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 30.0% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 159,953 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $12,667,000 after purchasing an additional 36,913 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in National Fuel Gas in the 1st quarter worth approximately $247,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 220,730 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $17,480,000 after buying an additional 8,304 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth increased its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 79.5% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 12,729 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,008,000 after buying an additional 5,638 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in National Fuel Gas during the 1st quarter worth approximately $138,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on NFG shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of National Fuel Gas from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, National Fuel Gas has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.50.

National Fuel Gas Stock Up 0.3%

National Fuel Gas stock opened at $83.63 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $7.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.37. National Fuel Gas Company has a 52 week low of $75.17 and a 52 week high of $97.06. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $79.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $84.55. The company has a quick ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 3.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.54 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $564.33 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.64 earnings per share. National Fuel Gas’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that National Fuel Gas Company will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.555 per share. This is a positive change from National Fuel Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is presently 30.83%.

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.