WNY Asset Management LLC Purchases 7,478 Shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG)

WNY Asset Management LLC raised its position in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) by 32.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,767 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after acquiring an additional 7,478 shares during the quarter. WNY Asset Management LLC's holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $2,436,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the 4th quarter worth approximately $67,393,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 37.9% in 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 buying an additional 279,857 shares during the last quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC bought a new position in National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter worth about $16,906,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 62.6% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 458,112 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $36,557,000 after purchasing an additional 176,290 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,067,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.96% of the company's stock.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NFG opened at $89.09 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 207.19, a PEG ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.62. The firm's 50-day moving average is $83.40 and its 200 day moving average is $77.11. National Fuel Gas Company has a 12 month low of $56.29 and a 12 month high of $89.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $729.95 million during 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%. National Fuel Gas's quarterly revenue was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.79 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that National Fuel Gas Company will post 6.64 EPS for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.535 per share. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. This is an increase from National Fuel Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. National Fuel Gas's payout ratio is 497.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of National Fuel Gas from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. Scotiabank lifted 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, July 11th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $85.00 to $107.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $95.33.

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.

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