Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.13 EPS

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) posted its earnings results on Monday. The utilities provider reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.82 by ($0.13), Briefing.com reports. Northwest Natural had a return on equity of 7.52% and a net margin of 7.84%. The firm had revenue of $433.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.81 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.01 EPS. Northwest Natural’s revenue was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Northwest Natural Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NWN opened at $38.37 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $37.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.70. Northwest Natural has a 1-year low of $34.95 and a 1-year high of $47.29. The company has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.76 and a beta of 0.54.

Northwest Natural Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.488 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.09%. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 75.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NWN has been the topic of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Northwest Natural from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on Northwest Natural in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $39.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Northwest Natural has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $41.40.

About Northwest Natural

Northwest Natural Holding Company, through its subsidiary, Northwest Natural Gas Company, provides regulated natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the United States. The company operates a mist gas storage facility contracted to other utilities, third-party marketers, and electric generators; offers natural gas asset management services; and operates an appliance retail center.