Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN) Shares Sold by TD Asset Management Inc

Key Points

• TD Asset Management Inc reduced its stake in Northwest Natural Gas Company by 74.2%, now holding 9,400 shares valued at $402,000 after selling 27,100 shares in the first quarter.
• In recent earnings, Northwest Natural Gas reported $2.28 EPS, surpassing analysts' expectations of $2.09, alongside a 14% year-over-year revenue increase to $494.28 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.49, with a dividend yield of 4.9%, and a payout ratio currently at 77.78%.

TD Asset Management Inc reduced its stake in Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN - Free Report) by 74.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,400 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 27,100 shares during the quarter. TD Asset Management Inc's holdings in Northwest Natural Gas were worth $402,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NWN. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 2.6% in the first quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,511 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $492,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 24.6% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,689 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 32.5% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,830 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $112,000 after buying an additional 694 shares during the last quarter. Abound Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Northwest Natural Gas by 1.7% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 49,435 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,112,000 after acquiring an additional 811 shares during the last quarter. 75.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Northwest Natural Gas

In other news, Director David Hugo Anderson sold 7,591 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.99, for a total value of $311,155.09. Following the sale, the director directly owned 102,291 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,192,908.09. This trade represents a 6.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 22,591 shares of company stock valued at $923,455 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on NWN. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Northwest Natural Gas from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Northwest Natural Gas from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 13th.

Northwest Natural Gas Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NWN stock traded down $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $39.89. The company had a trading volume of 79,568 shares, compared to its average volume of 275,557. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.61 billion, a PE ratio of 15.77 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.87. Northwest Natural Gas Company has a fifty-two week low of $37.41 and a fifty-two week high of $44.38. The company's fifty day moving average is $40.59 and its 200 day moving average is $41.23.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $236.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $252.70 million. Northwest Natural Gas had a return on equity of 8.60% and a net margin of 8.34%. Research analysts expect that Northwest Natural Gas Company will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. Northwest Natural Gas's payout ratio is 77.47%.

Northwest Natural Gas Profile

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.