National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) Shares Sold by Valley Wealth Managers Inc.

Key Points

• Valley Wealth Managers Inc. decreased its stake in National Fuel Gas Company by 5.4%, owning 305,800 shares valued at approximately $24.2 million as of the last reporting period.
• Several analysts have recently upgraded their ratings for National Fuel Gas, with Bank of America raising its rating to "buy" and increasing the target price from $85.00 to $107.00.
• National Fuel Gas recently increased its quarterly dividend from $0.52 to $0.535, resulting in a dividend yield of 2.47%, despite a high dividend payout ratio of 497.67%.

Valley Wealth Managers Inc. trimmed its position in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) by 5.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 305,800 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 17,589 shares during the period. National Fuel Gas comprises about 1.8% of Valley Wealth Managers Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. owned about 0.34% of National Fuel Gas worth $24,216,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the 4th quarter valued at about $67,393,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings 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 during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $16,906,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in National Fuel Gas during the first quarter worth approximately $14,486,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in National Fuel Gas by 62.6% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 458,112 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $36,557,000 after purchasing an additional 176,290 shares during the period. 73.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on NFG shares. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $88.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Wall Street Zen cut National Fuel Gas from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. Finally, Bank of America raised National Fuel Gas from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $107.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, National Fuel Gas currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $95.33.

National Fuel Gas Stock Down 0.7%

National Fuel Gas stock opened at $86.58 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.47. National Fuel Gas Company has a one year low of $56.29 and a one year high of $89.82. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $77.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 201.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.62.

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

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were issued 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 dividend yield of 2.47%. National Fuel Gas's dividend payout ratio is 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.

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