National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) Position Cut by Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P.

Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. reduced its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) by 15.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 134,736 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 25,017 shares during the period. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. owned 0.15% of National Fuel Gas worth $10,670,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 9,122 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $551,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in National Fuel Gas in the first quarter valued at approximately $900,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $67,393,000. ING Groep NV purchased a new position in National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,086,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $862,000. 73.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on NFG shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, National Fuel Gas currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $82.33.

National Fuel Gas Stock Up 0.4%

NYSE:NFG traded up $0.31 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $86.00. The stock had a trading volume of 1,026,188 shares, compared to its average volume of 560,585. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. National Fuel Gas Company has a 1-year low of $53.88 and a 1-year high of $87.52. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $81.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $74.02. The company has a market cap of $7.77 billion, a PE ratio of 200.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.62.

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, topping 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 business had revenue of $729.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $770.81 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.79 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that National Fuel Gas Company will post 6.64 EPS for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a $0.535 dividend. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This is an increase from National Fuel Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. National Fuel Gas's payout ratio is currently 497.67%.

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.