Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.17 EPS

Key Points

• Quarterly results beat expectations: Northwest Natural reported a loss of $0.71 per share, versus forecasts for a $0.88 loss, while revenue of $177.97 million exceeded estimates and rose 8% year over year.
• The company raised its 2026 EPS guidance to $3.10–$3.20, citing stronger year-to-date results, cost discipline, and favorable regulatory outcomes.
• Northwest Natural increased its annual dividend by $0.03 to $2.00 per share, extending its record of annual dividend growth to 71 years.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The utilities provider reported ($0.71) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.88) by $0.17, Zacks reports. Northwest Natural Gas had a return on equity of 8.33% and a net margin of 9.75%. The firm had revenue of $177.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $176.40 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.73) earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Here are the key takeaways from Northwest Natural Gas' conference call:

• Northwest Natural raised its 2026 EPS guidance to $3.10–$3.20, citing stronger-than-expected year-to-date results, cost discipline and constructive regulatory outcomes. Year-to-date EPS rose 6.6% to $1.62.
• Regulatory progress included an $8.6 million revenue increase for SiEnergy and a $13 million Oregon rate increase, with new Oregon rates effective October 31. The company said Texas GRIP filings could begin in 2027, helping accelerate recovery of infrastructure investment.
• Growth remains strong, though housing activity has moderated: SiEnergy customer growth was about 13% over the past 12 months, below the company’s 15%–20% expectation at the start of the year, while its development backlog reached nearly 265,000 lots. Water customer growth was just over 2%, and management maintained its long-term 2%–3% target.
• The $300 million MX3 storage expansion is fully contracted, and management still expects notice to proceed by the end of 2027 despite an ongoing appeal of its permit. If advanced, the project could lift the company’s long-term earnings growth target from 4%–6% to 5%–7%.
• The company raised its annual dividend by $0.03 to $2 per share, its largest increase since 2012, extending its dividend-growth record to 71 years. Management said the payout ratio is within its 55%–65% long-term target range.

Northwest Natural Gas Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of Northwest Natural Gas stock traded down $0.08 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $51.73. 404,873 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 264,320. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $2.18 billion, a PE ratio of 17.13 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $48.77 and a 200-day moving average of $50.18. Northwest Natural Gas has a 12 month low of $45.69 and a 12 month high of $55.99.

Northwest Natural Gas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. This is a boost from Northwest Natural Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.4925. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. Northwest Natural Gas's payout ratio is presently 66.67%.

Key Headlines Impacting Northwest Natural Gas

Here are the key news stories impacting Northwest Natural Gas this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Northwest Natural raised its 2026 EPS guidance to $3.10–$3.20, citing a SiEnergy rate settlement and cost controls. The higher outlook may support investor confidence in earnings growth. Article: Northwest Natural raises 2026 EPS guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter results also exceeded estimates: the net loss was $0.71 per share versus analysts’ expected $0.88 loss, while revenue of $177.97 million topped forecasts and grew 8% year over year. Article: Northwest Natural Q3 results
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target from $49 to $50 but maintained an “equal weight” rating. The new target is still below the prevailing share price, suggesting limited upside in the firm’s view and potentially weighing on sentiment. Wells Fargo ratings

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David Anderson sold 1,500 shares of Northwest Natural Gas stock in a transaction on Monday, October 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.71, for a total value of $73,065.00. Following the sale, the director owned 47,759 shares in the company, valued at $2,326,340.89. The trade was a 3.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders sold a total of 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $221,400 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NWN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Northwest Natural Gas from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Northwest Natural Gas from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Huntington started coverage on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research report on Monday, September 14th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $58.00 price objective on the stock. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $59.00 price objective on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research note on Friday. Finally, Mizuho began coverage on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $51.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $55.43.

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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