1,154,321 Shares in National Fuel Gas Company $NFG Bought by Norges Bank

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,154,321 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $92,415,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 105.3% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 423 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 184.8% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 860 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 558 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 49.1% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 914 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on NFG shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. KeyCorp began coverage on shares of National Fuel Gas in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.00.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

NFG stock opened at $77.46 on Friday. National Fuel Gas Company has a 52 week low of $75.85 and a 52 week high of $97.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $85.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.37.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.85 by ($0.14). National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 27.48% and a return on equity of 20.62%. The business had revenue of $858.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $856.57 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.39 EPS. National Fuel Gas’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that National Fuel Gas Company will post 7.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a $0.535 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.96%.

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.