Baird Financial Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in Northwest Natural Gas Company $NWN

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group increased its Northwest Natural Gas stake by 12.8% in the second quarter, bringing its holdings to 194,795 shares worth approximately $9.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own 75.13% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $55.25. Wells Fargo upgraded the stock to “equal weight” with a $50 target.
• Northwest Natural Gas reported quarterly EPS of $0.01, beating estimates of a $0.08 loss, while revenue rose 3.1% year over year. The company maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.4925 per share, equivalent to a 4.1% annualized yield.

Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN - Free Report) by 12.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 194,795 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 22,055 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.46% of Northwest Natural Gas worth $9,557,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of NWN. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 104.3% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 711 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 363 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 197.5% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 723 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 77.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 807 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Northwest Natural Gas in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northwest Natural Gas in the 1st quarter valued at about $71,000. 75.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NWN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Northwest Natural Gas from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $50.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $55.25.

Northwest Natural Gas Price Performance

Shares of NWN stock opened at $48.47 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $50.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.95. The firm has a market cap of $2.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.16 and a beta of 0.44. Northwest Natural Gas Company has a 1-year low of $41.50 and a 1-year high of $55.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.08) by $0.09. The company had revenue of $243.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $271.87 million. Northwest Natural Gas had a return on equity of 8.33% and a net margin of 9.75%.Northwest Natural Gas's quarterly revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.01 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Northwest Natural Gas Company will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Gas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $0.4925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 31st. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. Northwest Natural Gas's payout ratio is 65.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David Anderson sold 1,500 shares of Northwest Natural Gas stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.86, for a total value of $76,290.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 50,759 shares in the company, valued at $2,581,602.74. This trade represents a 2.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

About Northwest Natural Gas

Northwest Natural Gas Company, operating under 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, along with related utility and energy services.

Through its regulated natural gas utility, Northwest Natural serves customers in Oregon and southwest Washington. The company also has expanded beyond its traditional gas-distribution operations through businesses involved in water and wastewater services, renewable natural gas and other energy-related activities.

The company traces its history to 1859 and has developed into one of the Pacific Northwest's established natural gas utilities.

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