Entropy Technologies LP Buys 12,963 Shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG)

Key Points

• Entropy Technologies LP increased its holdings in National Fuel Gas Company by 99.8%, acquiring an additional 12,963 shares, bringing their total shares to 25,946 valued at approximately $2.05 million.
• National Fuel Gas recently raised its quarterly dividend from $0.52 to $0.535, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 2.4%.
• Analysts have varied opinions on National Fuel Gas stock, with price targets ranging from $88.00 to $107.00, contributing to the stock’s current consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Entropy Technologies LP boosted its holdings in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) by 99.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,946 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after acquiring an additional 12,963 shares during the quarter. Entropy Technologies LP's holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $2,055,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NFG. LSV Asset Management boosted its position in 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 valued at $170,515,000 after buying an additional 491,890 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 1,447,665 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $87,844,000 after buying an additional 70,332 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in National Fuel Gas by 2.1% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,104,852 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $87,493,000 after purchasing an additional 22,320 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in National Fuel Gas by 37.9% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,019,072 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $61,837,000 after purchasing an additional 279,857 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in National Fuel Gas by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 989,487 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $60,043,000 after purchasing an additional 43,656 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.96% of the company's stock.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

NYSE NFG opened at $87.95 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $85.19 and a 200-day moving average of $79.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market cap of $7.95 billion, a PE ratio of 33.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 0.65. National Fuel Gas Company has a 52-week low of $58.30 and a 52-week high of $89.82.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $531.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $596.12 million. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 11.15% and a return on equity of 20.81%. National Fuel Gas's quarterly revenue was up 27.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.99 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.535 dividend. This is a positive change from National Fuel Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. National Fuel Gas's dividend payout ratio is presently 80.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on NFG. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of National Fuel Gas from $88.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Bank of America raised shares of National Fuel Gas from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $85.00 to $107.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $95.33.

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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