Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) Shares Bought by Deutsche Bank AG

Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN - Free Report) by 80.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 110,152 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 49,140 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG owned 0.27% of Northwest Natural worth $4,358,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Northwest Natural by 36.5% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 37,925 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,500,000 after purchasing an additional 10,132 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Northwest Natural during the fourth quarter worth approximately $186,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Northwest Natural during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,161,000. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Northwest Natural by 28.9% during the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 95,623 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,783,000 after purchasing an additional 21,459 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in Northwest Natural by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 36,271 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,435,000 after purchasing an additional 2,599 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Northwest Natural

In related news, CEO David Hugo Anderson sold 7,500 shares of Northwest Natural stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.46, for a total value of $310,950.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 117,382 shares in the company, valued at $4,866,657.72. This trade represents a 6.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP David A. Weber sold 2,183 shares of Northwest Natural stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.46, for a total transaction of $92,690.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 255 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,827.30. This trade represents a 89.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 17,692 shares of company stock worth $747,518. Insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Northwest Natural Stock Performance

Shares of NWN traded down $0.50 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $40.45. 173,856 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 248,635. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.63 billion, a PE ratio of 19.08 and a beta of 0.56. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $42.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.31. Northwest Natural Holding has a 52-week low of $34.82 and a 52-week high of $44.38.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $494.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $464.65 million. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 6.90% and a return on equity of 5.89%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.69 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Northwest Natural Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were given a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.85%. Northwest Natural's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Northwest Natural from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th.

About Northwest Natural

Northwest Natural Holding Company, through its subsidiary, Northwest Natural Gas Company, provides regulated natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the United States. The company operates a mist gas storage facility contracted to other utilities, third-party marketers, and electric generators; offers natural gas asset management services; and operates an appliance retail center.