Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) Given New $50.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo raised its price target on Northwest Natural Gas from $49 to $50 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating; the new target implies 3.37% downside from the prior close.
• Analyst views are mixed, with the stock carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $55.43. BTIG Research reiterated “buy” with a $59 target.
• Northwest Natural Gas beat quarterly EPS expectations, reporting a loss of $0.71 per share versus the consensus estimate of a $0.88 loss; revenue was $177.97 million, up 8% year over year.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) had its price target increased by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $49.00 to $50.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the utilities provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective indicates a potential downside of 3.37% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $59.00 price target on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Northwest Natural Gas to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings cut Northwest Natural Gas from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $54.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Huntington assumed coverage on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research report on Monday, September 14th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $58.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $55.43.

Northwest Natural Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NWN traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $51.74. 40,973 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 273,061. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.27 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.77. Northwest Natural Gas has a 52 week low of $45.69 and a 52 week high of $55.99. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $48.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.15.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported ($0.71) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.88) by $0.17. The business had revenue of $177.97 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $176.40 million. Northwest Natural Gas had a return on equity of 8.33% and a net margin of 9.75%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.73) EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Northwest Natural Gas will post 3.06 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northwest Natural Gas

In related news, Director David Anderson sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.71, for a total value of $73,065.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 47,759 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,326,340.89. This trade represents a 3.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $221,400. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Northwest Natural Gas

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 743,512 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $39,571,000 after purchasing an additional 18,669 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Northwest Natural Gas during the second quarter valued at about $24,160,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in Northwest Natural Gas during the second quarter worth about $16,287,000. Edgestream Partners L.P. increased its holdings in Northwest Natural Gas by 54.1% during the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 201,660 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $10,732,000 after buying an additional 70,773 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Northwest Natural Gas by 37.4% during the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 201,546 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,406,000 after buying an additional 54,852 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.13% of the company's stock.

Northwest Natural Gas Company Profile

Northwest Natural Gas Company, operating as NW Natural and a subsidiary of Northwest Natural Holding Company, is an energy and utility company headquartered in Portland, Oregon. Its principal business is the distribution of natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

NW Natural serves communities primarily in Oregon and southwest Washington through a regulated natural gas distribution system. The company also provides related services, including natural gas storage and programs focused on renewable natural gas and other lower-carbon energy solutions.

The company traces its history to 1859 and has expanded beyond its traditional natural gas operations through investments in water and wastewater utilities.

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