Aspiriant LLC Takes $240,000 Position in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG)

Aspiriant LLC acquired a new stake in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 3,028 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $240,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NFG. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 46.8% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,814 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 578 shares during the period. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors bought a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter valued at about $367,000. ING Groep NV bought a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,086,000. Navellier & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 36.5% in the 4th quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. now owns 13,240 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $803,000 after acquiring an additional 3,539 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthspire Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 11,826 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $718,000 after acquiring an additional 326 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 73.96% of the company's stock.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

Shares of National Fuel Gas stock opened at $85.42 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 198.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.62. National Fuel Gas Company has a twelve month low of $53.88 and a twelve month high of $85.80. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.36.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.21. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 18.55%. The company had revenue of $729.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $770.81 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.79 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that National Fuel Gas Company will post 6.64 EPS for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a $0.535 dividend. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.51%. This is an increase from National Fuel Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. National Fuel Gas's payout ratio is presently 497.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NFG has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of National Fuel Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, National Fuel Gas has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $82.33.

About National Fuel Gas

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.

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