National Fuel Gas Company Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.54 (NYSE:NFG)

National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.535 per share by the oil and gas producer on Thursday, January 15th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st.

National Fuel Gas has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.0%per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 55 consecutive years. National Fuel Gas has a dividend payout ratio of 25.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect National Fuel Gas to earn $7.79 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.14 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 27.5%.

National Fuel Gas Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:NFG opened at $80.90 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.31 billion, a PE ratio of 14.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. National Fuel Gas has a 12-month low of $60.03 and a 12-month high of $94.13. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $81.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.82.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.14. National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 21.76% and a net margin of 22.86%.The firm had revenue of $466.28 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $534.57 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.77 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 22.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 103.4% during the third 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 buying an additional 1,087,067 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in National Fuel Gas during the 2nd quarter worth about $91,964,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its stake in National Fuel Gas by 642.7% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 465,830 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $39,460,000 after purchasing an additional 403,107 shares during the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the second quarter valued at about $27,050,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 428.8% in the third quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 308,466 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $28,493,000 after purchasing an additional 250,130 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

About National Fuel Gas

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.