Teacher Retirement System of Texas Trims Stock Holdings in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas trimmed its holdings in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) by 26.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 34,510 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 12,328 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $2,733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the first quarter worth approximately $40,000. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in National Fuel Gas in the first quarter worth approximately $40,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd boosted its position in National Fuel Gas by 223.2% during the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 656 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares in the last quarter. 73.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

National Fuel Gas Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of National Fuel Gas stock traded up $0.62 during trading on Friday, reaching $82.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 582,238 shares, compared to its average volume of 567,830. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The company has a market cap of $7.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 192.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.62. National Fuel Gas Company has a 1-year low of $56.29 and a 1-year high of $86.45. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $76.17.

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

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a $0.535 dividend. 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. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.58%. National Fuel Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 497.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on NFG. Scotiabank increased their target price on National Fuel Gas from $88.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Bank of America increased their target price on National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut National Fuel Gas from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, National Fuel Gas currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $88.00.

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.