VELA Investment Management LLC Purchases New Shares in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG)

VELA Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 19,459 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $1,541,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 5.6% during 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 purchasing an additional 117,351 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL grew its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 5.1% during 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 last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the fourth quarter valued at about $67,393,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 37.9% during the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 989,487 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $60,043,000 after acquiring an additional 43,656 shares during the last quarter. 73.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

National Fuel Gas Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE NFG traded down $0.56 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $83.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 551,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 566,478. The stock has a market cap of $7.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 194.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.62. National Fuel Gas Company has a 12 month low of $54.05 and a 12 month high of $86.45. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.67. 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 (NYSE:NFG - Get Free Report) last issued 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.79 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.535 per share. This is a positive change from National Fuel Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.56%. National Fuel Gas's payout ratio is presently 497.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on NFG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of National Fuel Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, National Fuel Gas currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $82.33.

National Fuel Gas Company 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.