National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Sets New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $75.67 and last traded at $76.9910, with a volume of 23886 shares. The stock had previously closed at $77.55.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NFG has been the subject of several research reports. KeyCorp assumed coverage on National Fuel Gas in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $110.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings cut National Fuel Gas from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded National Fuel Gas from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.00.

National Fuel Gas Stock Down 0.5%

The firm has a market capitalization of $7.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $85.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.62.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.85 by ($0.14). National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 20.62% and a net margin of 27.48%.The company had revenue of $858.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $856.57 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that National Fuel Gas Company will post 7.58 EPS for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $0.555 dividend. This is a boost from National Fuel Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is 28.96%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NFG. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 158.7% in the third quarter. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP now owns 95,206 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $8,794,000 after acquiring an additional 58,399 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. raised its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 51.7% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 64,112 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,922,000 after acquiring an additional 21,861 shares in the last quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 74.9% in the third quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 521,928 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $48,210,000 after acquiring an additional 223,459 shares in the last quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 39.0% in the third quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 100,255 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $9,261,000 after buying an additional 28,118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP increased its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 328.4% in the third quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 26,041 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,405,000 after buying an additional 19,963 shares during the last quarter. 73.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.