Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Decreases Stock Holdings in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC trimmed its stake in shares of Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN - Free Report) by 14.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,094 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 8,150 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned about 0.12% of Northwest Natural worth $2,055,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Northwest Natural by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 6,079 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $240,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in Northwest Natural by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,223 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $444,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 13.5% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,906 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $115,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in Northwest Natural by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 9,475 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $375,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in Northwest Natural by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 31,020 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,227,000 after acquiring an additional 654 shares during the last quarter. 75.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northwest Natural Stock Performance

Shares of NWN traded down $0.03 on Thursday, reaching $40.04. 47,258 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 249,263. The stock has a market cap of $1.61 billion, a PE ratio of 18.89 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Northwest Natural Holding has a 52-week low of $34.82 and a 52-week high of $44.38. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $41.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $41.23.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $494.28 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $464.65 million. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 6.90% and a return on equity of 5.89%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.69 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were issued a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.90%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. Northwest Natural's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.78%.

Insider Activity at Northwest Natural

In related news, CEO David Hugo Anderson sold 7,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.46, for a total transaction of $310,950.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 117,382 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,866,657.72. This trade represents a 6.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP David A. Weber sold 2,183 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.46, for a total transaction of $92,690.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 255 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,827.30. This represents a 89.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 24,774 shares of company stock valued at $1,037,295. 0.84% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Northwest Natural from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th.

Northwest Natural 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.