Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Has $17.76 Million Stock Position in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG)

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) by 9.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 224,204 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after purchasing an additional 18,981 shares during the quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC owned 0.25% of National Fuel Gas worth $17,755,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in National Fuel Gas by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,584,155 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $156,807,000 after buying an additional 85,950 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,199,787 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $146,502,000 after acquiring an additional 117,351 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL grew its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 5.1% in the 4th 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 acquiring an additional 70,332 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at about $67,393,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 37.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,019,072 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $61,837,000 after acquiring an additional 279,857 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.96% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

National Fuel Gas stock traded up $0.85 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $85.42. 644,292 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 633,282. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $80.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.28. The firm has a market cap of $7.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 198.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.62. 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 52 week low of $53.88 and a 52 week high of $85.80.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $729.95 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $770.81 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.79 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that National Fuel Gas Company will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.535 per share. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.51%. This is a boost from National Fuel Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. National Fuel Gas's payout ratio is 479.07%.

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.