Jennison Associates LLC Acquires Shares of 23,207 Northwest Natural Gas Company $NWN

Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new stake in Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 23,207 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,235,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 77.4% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 807 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in Northwest Natural Gas by 104.3% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 711 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Northwest Natural Gas during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Northwest Natural Gas by 375.6% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033 shares during the period. Finally, Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Northwest Natural Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Freedom Capital upgraded Northwest Natural Gas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a report on Friday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research note on Monday, May 11th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Finally, TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a report on Thursday, April 16th. They set a “hold” rating and a $58.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northwest Natural Gas presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.25.

Northwest Natural Gas Stock Performance

NYSE NWN opened at $51.48 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.57 and a beta of 0.43. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $49.76 and a 200 day moving average of $50.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Northwest Natural Gas Company has a twelve month low of $39.29 and a twelve month high of $55.99.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.40 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $490.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $538.57 million. Northwest Natural Gas had a net margin of 9.56% and a return on equity of 8.46%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.28 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Northwest Natural Gas Company will post 3.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $0.4925 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Northwest Natural Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.24%.

About Northwest Natural Gas

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE: NWN), commonly known as NW Natural, is a publicly traded energy utility primarily engaged in the distribution of natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, the company operates an extensive pipeline network spanning thousands of miles across Oregon and southwest Washington. Its core business activities include gas procurement, system operation and maintenance, safety inspections and customer service support.

Dating back to the mid-19th century, Northwest Natural traces its origins to the Portland Gas Light Company, which first illuminated Portland streets with manufactured gas in 1859.