AQR Capital Management LLC Purchases 59,667 Shares of National Fuel Gas Company $NFG

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in National Fuel Gas Company by 7.2%, acquiring an additional 59,667 shares, bringing its total to 893,866 shares valued at approximately $70.8 million.
• Several large investors, including LSV Asset Management and Invesco Ltd., have also significantly increased their stakes in National Fuel Gas during the first quarter of the year.
• National Fuel Gas recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.535 per share, with a current annualized dividend yield of 2.5% and a payout ratio of 80.45%.

AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) by 7.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 893,866 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after purchasing an additional 59,667 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.99% of National Fuel Gas worth $70,785,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. LSV Asset Management increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 29.6% in the first quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,153,236 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $170,515,000 after buying an additional 491,890 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 1,495,867 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $118,458,000 after acquiring an additional 48,202 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in National Fuel Gas by 15.3% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,174,783 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $93,031,000 after purchasing an additional 155,711 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in National Fuel Gas by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,104,852 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $87,493,000 after purchasing an additional 22,320 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in National Fuel Gas by 93.7% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 951,069 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $75,315,000 after purchasing an additional 460,100 shares during the last quarter. 73.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

National Fuel Gas Trading Up 1.1%

NYSE:NFG traded up $0.94 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $88.07. The company had a trading volume of 446,429 shares, compared to its average volume of 488,762. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.46 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $86.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.99. The company has a market capitalization of $7.96 billion, a PE ratio of 33.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 0.61. National Fuel Gas Company has a 52 week low of $58.82 and a 52 week high of $89.82.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $531.83 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $596.12 million. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 11.15% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 27.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.99 EPS. National Fuel Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.000-8.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 6.800-6.950 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that National Fuel Gas Company will post 6.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.535 dividend. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. National Fuel Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NFG. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of National Fuel Gas in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of National Fuel Gas from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 10th. Zacks Research lowered shares of National Fuel Gas from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $85.00 to $107.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, National Fuel Gas currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $96.67.

National Fuel Gas Profile

National Fuel Gas Company operates as a diversified energy company. It operates through four segments: Exploration and Production, Pipeline and Storage, Gathering, and Utility. The Exploration and Production segment explores for, develops, and produces natural gas and oil. The Pipeline and Storage segment provides interstate natural gas transportation services through an integrated gas pipeline system in Pennsylvania and New York; and owns and operates underground natural gas storage fields.